


Avatar: The Legend of Sokka

by Charbonne



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Aang is there in spirit (literally), Avatar Sokka, Being the Avatar sucks, Denial, Gen, Next Avatar, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Other Airbenders, Sokka sucks at bending
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-02
Updated: 2017-10-18
Packaged: 2018-09-03 18:45:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 25,813
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8726047
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Charbonne/pseuds/Charbonne
Summary: He kept on messing up. There was no way that he should be a waterbender, let alone the next Avatar.





	1. Chapter 1

_Water, Earth, Fire, Air…_

_My grandmother used to tell me stories about the old days. A time of peace, when the Avatar kept peace between the Water Tribes, Earth Kingdom, Fire Nation, and Air Nomads, but that all changed when the Fire Nation attacked. Only the Avatar, master of all four elements, only he could stop the ruthless firebenders, but when the world needed him most, he vanished._

_A hundred years have passed and the Fire Nation is nearing victory in the war. Two years ago, the men of my tribe journeyed to the Earth Kingdom to help fight against the Fire Nation, leaving me and my brother to look after my tribe. Some people believe that the Avatar was never reborn into the Air Nomads and that the cycle is broken, but I haven't lost hope. I still believe that somehow, the Avatar will return to save the world…_

 

He was three the first time he bended. His mother had been trying to get him to go to bed when all he wanted to do was stay up and listen to more of his father's tales of warriors, tiger-seal hunts, sailing on the ocean, and visiting far-off lands he had never even heard of. The boy started throwing a tantrum, yelling and pounding his fists and kicking his feet, trying in vain to make his parents keep him up. His mother shook her head and tried to pick the boy up, which caused him to beat the ground harder, where tiny cracks formed beneath the furs of the igloo. One last pound later, he found himself drenched, shock reflected in his wide blue eyes as well as in the faces of his parents.

It didn't take long for Hakoda and Kya to realize that their eldest, Sokka, was a waterbender, the first born into the tribe since the raids on the South Pole stole away the rest of them. Sokka didn't understand, at first. All he knew was that water tended to do interesting things whenever he was upset or exited. He didn't know the danger he was in, the danger his entire family was in, especially since a year later, his baby sister Katara had gotten so upset with him over him taking her favorite doll that she caused a wave of water to erupt from the jug at the back of the igloo and drench them both. All he understood was that he and his sister were special, since neither of them saw anyone that could do anything like bend water.

He and his sister tended to play together instead, often getting into water fights that resulted in the both of them getting soaked from head to toe and trying to explain to an exasperated Kya that they had instead fallen into a pool of water. Katara was of course a natural, and seemed to effortlessly bend water to her will with a few gestures. Sokka however was more apt to cause accidents, and often lost in his fights with his sister with odd steps that seemed to make him trip up constantly.

Katara often tried to show her older brother the finer gestures that would help him control the water better, but often those missteps would cause him to mess up constantly. Katara joked that he didn't need to add extra flair to his movements. Sokka grumbled that he was controlling the water, Sokka-style.

"Maybe you're too excited, Sokka," Katara suggested one day. Both of them were helping out the women hang strips of meat to dry. Sokka scowled at the idea of not being with the men of the tribe, but he decided that since they needed a strong pair of hands, it was fine that he was stuck here instead of off hunting with the men.

"I'm not exited, Katara. I'm just not as good a bender as you." Sokka hung a strip on the line. "Besides, maybe it was a mistake."

He turned and realized that his seven-year-old sister was glaring at him. Geez, what did he do now? "The spirits don't make mistakes, Sokka. Gran-Gran said so herself." Oh, that again.

"Well, maybe they did in my case. How else do you explain the fact that I can't even get any of the basic forms down?" Sokka heaved a sigh. "Besides, I'm not even sure I even wanna bend anymore."

The air around him suddenly turned frosty and Katara snorted. She threw up her hands in disgust and stormed off. Sokka tried to go after her, but ended up falling backward when his feet wouldn't budge. Somehow, in her annoyance, Katara had managed to freeze his lower legs into the ice.

Sokka tried to pull his legs free, and when that didn't work, he then attempted to bend the ice off of them. That was met with mixed results as his legs were freed from the ice, but not his feet. "Aw, come on! Katara!" He looked over at the other women, most of who were snickering behind their hands. Grumbling, he tried multiple times to bend the ice off his feet, and when they were freed, he stormed off. "Stupid magic water stuff…" he mumbled.

* * *

For the next several weeks, Sokka avoided Katara whenever she would try and practice waterbending. It wasn't that he was mad at her; it was just that he was madder at himself. It didn't help that Katara still tried to drag him off to practice as well. It finally came to a head when he yelled at her to leave him alone, that he'd practice on his own.

This was not missed by their parents, however. Hakoda watched the two of them bicker over bending and sighed. He knew that it wasn't right that Sokka was ignoring the one thing that he was born with, but he also knew that Sokka had a point. The boy was never going to be able to train as a waterbender as long as there were no masters around, and it hurt him to see both of his children essentially growing angrier with the other over the entire problem.

Kya was also watching and getting frustrated with the seeming hostility toward each other. They were family, and part of being Water Tribe was a close connection to family. Her mother-in-law had stated as such, and like it or not, the two of them had to resolve their differences or risk tearing the family apart.

However, it was when Kanna, their grandmother, had stepped between the two in their fight that they were finally able to resolve the problem. When both waterbenders had gotten into their most recent scrap over the issue, the older woman snatched both of them by the ear and dragged them into their hut. "What is the matter with the both of you? I've seen tiger-seals with less hostility during mating season than what the two of you seem to exhibit toward each other."

"He won't waterbend!" Katara exclaimed, pointing one pudgy finger in Sokka's direction.

Sokka crossed his arms and shook his head. "So? It's not like I wanna play with magic water."

"But you're a waterbender! We have to do it. Mom said we're the only ones in the tribe that can do it."

"I never wanted to be one!" Kanna's eyes opened wide at this admission. "Just because everyone says that I have to doesn't mean that I want to, Katara!"

"That's not right! What if we're the only ones that can stop the war and bring back waterbending to the tribe?" Katara shot her brother a glare, and crossed her arms.

"All right, that's enough!" Kanna rarely lost her cool, but the two children in front of her were testing her patience like no one else in the tribe could, with perhaps the exception of her son and Bato, his friend. "Now Katara, just because you believe that Sokka should learn waterbending, doesn't mean that you should decide for him what he should or should not do, and Sokka, you are a waterbender, whether you want to admit it or not."

"But I'm not good at it. I keep on messing up badly. Remember last month, when I almost dropped Kado's house into the ice? I didn't mean to, but I messed up what Katara was trying to show me!" Sokka threw up a hand in exasperation.

"And you apologized for that. Just because you made a mistake doesn't mean you should give up entirely on it."

"Maybe I'm not supposed to be a waterbender." Sokka slumped, and Kanna could tell that he was pleading. "Maybe I'm supposed to be a great warrior. I'm good at the boomerang. I can hit a block of ice with it from a good distance. That's good for something."

"You just keep practicing throwing that thing when you should be practicing waterbending." Katara stated.

Kanna frowned. "Look, maybe you should speak with your father about this. I know that there are no teachers for waterbending here, and perhaps it would be a good idea for you to try something new until we can get a teacher."

"You mean you're just going to let him give up?" Katara looked shocked, but the older woman could tell that the younger girl was more hurt than anything.

"I never said for him to give up on waterbending, but just perhaps wait for a teacher."

Sokka, however, looked hopeful. "You mean I don't have to work on it now?"

Kanna's lips pursed. "Just until we can get a teacher for you both."

Katara groaned and Sokka grinned broadly. Kanna could tell that Katara was about to argue the point more, but instead stood up. "I'm gonna go look and see if Mom needs me for anything." With that, the younger of the siblings stormed out.

Sokka stood too, and rubbed the back of his head. "I'm gonna look for Dad. Maybe he'd be willing to show me some stuff." He dashed out of the hut, intent on doing just that.

Kanna sighed. It wasn't the best solution, but it at least got the two of them to stop arguing over something that wasn't likely to change anytime soon. She almost wished she were younger, and that there were no war, but she knew better. Wishing wasn't going to change what was happening now, and she knew without a shadow of a doubt that what was happening was fate. _I'm too old for this._

* * *

 

Sokka concentrated. The small creature in front of him was sticking its nose up from its burrow, testing the air to see if there was danger. The boy held his breath, not wanting to scare the creature away. When finally it braved the outside world, a sudden whirring noise was all the warning it got before a boomerang hit its head squarely.

Sokka grinned at the result. Catching arctic rabbit-hens was difficult, since the creatures were likely to startle at any noise and bolt, squawking an alarm for its neighbors. While he had caught it, it was probably more to luck than to actual skill, although he had listened to what his father had told him about how to hunt these small creatures. He was sure that he had goofed and made some sort of noise, but the result was that for once, he could bring it home and feel good that he had gotten his family's dinner.

Still grinning, he whistled. A small, white polar bear-dog bounded up and sniffed at the boy. "Kiba, fetch!" The dog glanced over at Sokka and then at the corpse ahead. With puppy-like exuberance, Kiba bounded over to the dead rabbit-hen and brought it back.

Kiba had been a gift to Sokka on his ninth birthday, as his father had decided that a hunter needed a good dog to be able to help with tracking. There had been a litter born just last spring, and the two had bonded instantly. It had been worth it, seeing as he was the only boy his age and had no one to even do things those boys his age would do.

Tying a length of twine around the legs of his first kill, Sokka couldn't help but imagine what his mother was going to make with it. Absently he gave the dog a piece of fish and patted him on the head. Mind still focused on the possibility of what was going to be made for dinner, he didn't notice the black falling about him until Kiba sniffed at it and snorted. Sokka looked over and then around, realizing that black snow was falling about him.

"What…?" Snow was supposed to be white, not black, and as more fell around him, he decided, just this once, to bend it away. The black snow, however, would not bend to his command, and Sokka gave up, instead determined to run back home and tell everyone.

When he got back, the village was in an uproar. The men were running around, gathering up weapons of all sorts and the women were shooing the children into their huts. Sokka looked around for his father and mother, but didn't see either of them. It was at the point that he decided to go look at their hut.

He ran into Katara, instead. His sister looked terrified and was running back toward the hut as fast as her legs could carry her. "Sokka!" She stumbled to a halt. "Dade told me that we need to get inside."

"Where's Dad?"

"With the other men. They said that all the kids need to go inside." Katara then looked at Sokka and put a gloved hand to her face. "No Sokka, we need to get inside!"

"I'm supposed to be a warrior. How am I gonna do that if I can't help?" He flailed his arms in a dramatic fashion. "I'm going!" Sokka then turned on his heel and ran, the rabbit-hen he'd caught abandoned in the snow.

* * *

He raced toward the beach where the men had run toward. He needed to be there, they might need his help. But when he got to the beach, he stopped in his tracks. A giant metal ship had wedged itself onto the beach, and several dozen men in red and black were fighting with the warriors of the tribe. The men of his tribe were in their normal outfits, having had little time to prepare for the arrival of invaders. Scanning the beach, he caught sight of a tall tribesman fighting with several of the invaders. _Dad,_ he thought.

Ignoring the danger, he started forward, a warrior cry carrying him forward. At least to him it sounded like a cry a warrior would make. More than likely, however, his yell of "Sneak attack!" was probably not the best thing he could have done. One of the invaders turned and shot a dart of flame toward the boy. Eyes going wide, his arms lifted in a defensive gesture as he prayed that the fire would miss him.

When nothing happened, he peeked over the hands covering his face. A sheet of ice stood between him and the firebender. Sokka could only stare in muted disbelief. Had he actually done that? It didn't make any sense. He'd abandoned his bending, so why did it save him? He barely noticed when the shield protecting him cracked and shattered, revealing the firebender. "Well, well, well. And here we thought that there was only one of you barbarians that could bend water. Or are you the whelp we were looking for?"

"Um, what's a whelp?" Ok, so maybe that wasn't the best thing he could come up with, but at the moment, his shocked mind wasn't processing the fact that the firebender was probably here to fry him. He stood there dumbly, looking at the man like he had grown a second head.

"Heh, dumb too. It's a good thing we're getting rid of filth like you." And with that, the firebender's fist flared.

Before the firebender could attack, a machete arced down, causing the man to dodge. Hakoda had appeared, and was now shoving the firebender back with a growl. "If you honestly think a kid has that much control of his bending, then maybe it's you that's dumb."

The firebender's eyes went wide. "Showing yourself now to save trash? Pathetic." He then punched a flame in Hakoda's direction.

Sokka watched the two men fight. His mind was slowly piecing what had just been said, and was realizing just what the invader's words meant. Waterbenders? They're after waterbenders? Suddenly it made sense; the fact that the Southern Water Tribe had no benders, Hakoda instructing both him and Katara to get back home, and the invaders to their shore. It made a sick sort of sense that left Sokka nauseated. Was that what happened to the rest of the benders? Did they get captured and killed by these men? It made no sense. He hadn't done anything to the Fire Nation. Why were they after him?

The firebender was skilled. Hakoda was slowly being beaten down by the other man, and a sudden realization swept over the boy. If he didn't do anything, his father was going to die. Just as he readied his boomerang, a sudden sweep of the firebender's legs caught Hakoda by surprise and knocked him to the ground. Fire dagger in hand, he plunged it into Hakoda's unprotected face.

Something snapped within Sokka. It was almost like a flood gate, and Sokka was unable to fight against the current of sudden… something, causing him to almost drown in it. He couldn't recognize anything, and as soon as it had appeared, it disappeared as a hand clamped down onto his shoulder.

With a gasp, Sokka was pulled around and the first thing the boy did was take a swing at the perpetrator. A soft "oof" was heard, and it registered finally that what he had swung at wasn't necessarily covered in black and red, but instead blue. He looked up, hoping that perhaps he'd been mistaken, that his father was the one that had stopped whatever it was, but was disappointed to find Bato looking down instead. "Easy, Sokka. You're alright. Just get back into town." The older man's voice was cracking with something, and Sokka felt his stomach freeze.

He spun around, despite Bato's warning of, "Don't!" He had to know. His dad was just fine, right? His eyes fell however on the still form of Hakoda. Some other men had gathered around, and were checking him over. Across from him Sokka could see the form of the firebender, and it was almost impossible to keep from throwing up. Gut torn open from the machete lying next to him, his face was blank and unseeing. Sokka instead tried to focus on his father, and when one of the guys checked for a pulse and shook his head, Sokka's stomach plummeted.

Sokka's view was suddenly blocked by Bato, but the scream that he heard instead was his own.


	2. Chapter 2

Katara fumed as she regarded the ice in front of her. It had been nearly a month since the attack that took her father's life, but that just made her more determined to learn waterbending. She didn't care if she was a girl or not, but she'd be ready for them the next time they decided to come after her village again. She'd make sure of that. Besides, she was the only one that would waterbend anymore. Sokka had stopped entirely.

After their father's funeral, Sokka had proclaimed that he would never waterbend again. No matter how many times that Katara nagged him. Even after an entire month, he hadn't budged. And now Katara was stuck with the knowledge that she was now the only waterbender in the entire South Pole that would bend.

What infuriated her more was that so far, no one else had pressed Sokka on this issue. Sure, Dad died. She knew that. And yes, that made Sokka the only male in the family that could support them. The other men were busy teaching Sokka everything they knew, so he could provide, especially since the raid hadn't just hit her family hard.

She glanced around. There were at least three homes that had been torched by the firebenders that had come onto their shores. Others were closer to the edge of the village, where they had come in to attack. At least three girls she had grown up with had died, and Sokka had at least two male friends that had perished in the blazes. None were quite Sokka's age, the oldest of which was a year younger than her, but that didn't mean that they weren't close. You had to be.

At least they still had their family. One boy that survived was without either parent. Akira no longer had either of his parents, and was now being raised by Bato. Bato, who now was in charge of the tribe. She could understand why Akira was angry and upset.

Maybe it had something to do with being a boy. She whipped her arm down and the ice in front of her cracked. Sokka wasn't the only one who was hurting because of what had happened. She wanted to make the Fire Nation pay for that particular reason. But to completely shun his bending? That was almost like cutting off his own arm. You just didn't do that.

Besides, she could show him some of the things that she'd been figuring out about waterbending. She could get the water to move to her command, separate, and melt and freeze. Not nearly as good as some of the stories she'd heard about master benders. They could make the water really move, manipulating even the ocean with their will. It was described as a dance, where the bender could move as gracefully and as accurately as she wished, and the water would react accordingly. She could almost imagine herself as one such bender, a beautiful dancer that moved as the moon did during its eternal dance throughout the skies.

As she moved through a motion she called 'skimming the water', she again thought about her self-appointed task. She would learn waterbending, even if she had to teach herself. It was probably going to take a lot of trial and error to do it, but if her ancestors had done it, then so could she. No one else was going to ever take anyone else away from her again.

* * *

"Got one!"

Sokka almost jumped up and down in joy at the sight of the fish dangling from the end of his fishing spear. It had taken him numerous times, and even though he had a pile of fish next to him in the snow, the fact still remained that he was glad that he finally had gotten spear fishing down. Bato had suggested practicing his spear thrusts with the fish, and the older man had told him that when he was good at that, then he could move on to bigger game, like the tiger-seals.

He leaned over and started stringing the fish together. Today had been more of a test for the thirteen-year-old than anything, and now that he had gotten down a crucial skill, he knew he could go on the hunt that the men were planning next. They were talking about going on a tiger-seal hunt to make sure they had enough supplies laid in for winter. The meat, of course, would be smoked for food, the fat rendered for fuel, and the skins used for clothing. Besides, it wasn't like he was being allowed to go on the whale hunt later that month, but at least doing this meant that he could go on to other hunts in the future.

When he had the fish strung together, he whistled. Kiba bounded over from where he was lying to follow the boy. The young polar dog was soon to be two, and now stood almost at the boy's shoulder. "Ya know, it would be really great if you could fish too. Then we'd bring in more food for everyone." Kiba just snuffed in Sokka's direction. "Hey, you eat more than I do. Just saying."

When the two finally got back to the village, Sokka was grinning. So far, he'd passed every one of Bato's tests to show he could provide. It wasn't too much longer until he became old enough for the ice dodging trial, but until then, he was still considered a child. Showing that he was learning as much as he could about what the men did was going a long way to proving to everyone that he was more than capable of providing for everyone.

He looked around and could tell that a lot of people were working on the nets and boats, patching and repairing the parts that were getting worn. The net was what the little kids were working on. The boats were what the men of the tribe were repairing. He could see the women working on the homes and food. He frowned suddenly. Katara was nowhere to be seen, which typically meant that she was working on waterbending. A sudden lump threatened to form in his throat. No, he was _not_ going to think about dad. That always caused him to break down. It wasn't happening today.

He was about to go over to where his grandmother was smoking some of the latest catch of fish when he noticed that there was a noise being carried on the wind. It almost sounded like a wounded tiger-seal, but they didn't come this close to their village. He looked over the village. No one else seemed to notice the sound, so Sokka made a decision. If it was a wounded animal, it would probably be better to put the creature out of its misery, especially if it was unable to do anything on its own.

He quickly wrote out a message in the snow and deposited the fish next to the igloo. Then, whistling for Kiba, he started for the sound. It almost sounded like it was moving away from the village. Well, that made things a bit easier. If it was moving away from the village, then he would make sure that it didn't change its mind. Besides, couldn't let all of that tasty meat go to waste, right?

Sokka made his way across the snow, the polar dog following closely behind him. It took a while, travelling over the snow and ice he called home, but the closer and closer he got to the location of the bellows, the more and more he considered turning away. Something in him was urging him to leave whatever it was alone, while another part was drawn to it like a moth to a flame. He glanced over to Kiba, who shuffled along and then nuzzled his shoulder. Sokka patted the white dog, his expression troubled as he travelled.

Something was off. Sokka could just feel it in the air. Whatever it was, he wanted nothing to do with it. However, when he crested the next ridge, his eyes went wide as he noted a lone iceberg, out in the middle of the ocean, with what appeared to be a large white creature on it. The creature's bellows could be clearly heard by now, and when it spotted Sokka, it suddenly paused, and then threw itself into the water.

Sokka had just about enough time to stare, shocked, when the creature managed to cross the waters and then jump out of the water. Kiba growled low in his throat, and the Water Tribe boy started scrambling back before he found himself pounced by the giant behemoth. A large, wet tongue then began licking him, and Sokka could only shove back against the giant head. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! What the heck? Kiba, you have any clues?"

Sokka looked over to his dog, only to find the dog had ceased growling and was now sniffing the large creature. Sokka gave up and then looked back at the creature before him. It was definitely large, with a saddle across its wide back and a pair of horns on either side of its head. A strange brown arrow pattern was in its fur on the creature's forehead, while the rest was a white color. It had six legs, which only added more confusion to what exactly the creature was.

Apparently, however, the creature had enough of Sokka trying to examine it, and decided to nuzzle the young boy again. Sokka shook his head, deciding that the mystery could hold for now and turned to look at Kiba. "Ugh, why do I get the feeling that I am not going to get any meat off of this guy? I mean, come on! Meat just doesn't get all lovey-dovey with the person that's going to eat it!"

For just one wild moment, the creature gave him a snort and nudged him hard, knocking Sokka over. It then turned around and walked back to the shore edge, then bellowed again. Sokka shook his head and turned around, thinking that this had to be a weird dream and maybe he should just tell the men of the tribe. However, the creature had other ideas, and bellowed again, before grabbing the back of Sokka's coat and chucking him onto its back with its teeth. "Whoa, hey! Are you kidding me?"

Sokka glared from his position in the saddle, none too happy about being manhandled while the beast started into the water. "Oh no, you are not taking me off somewhere!" Sokka made to jump off, noting that Kiba was about to come to his aid, when the creature jumped itself, seeming to float for a moment or two before it landed in the water. The splash the creature made caused Sokka to get drenched, and the boy immediately swept his arms around in a circle to draw the water off. He may not use his waterbending all the time like Katara insisted he should, but he did find it useful at times, like staying dry.

The creature didn't seem to care exactly what Sokka was doing, as it was moving now toward the iceberg it had left. The feeling of discomfort returned, and Sokka suddenly had the urge to just jump off of the creature and escape. He didn't get the chance, as the creature got to the lone iceberg and climbed atop it.

Sokka slid off its back, shivering. He shouldn't be here, he thought. He turned to the creature. "Okay, so maybe you're not just a dumb meat creature, but seriously? Can we go back now?" The creature ignored him, however, and instead walked forward and nudged something in the snow. Sokka didn't want to look, but curiosity got the better of him and he approached. "Okay, whatever it is, fine, I'll look, then we go back, deal?"

The boy then stopped cold. Nestled in the snow was a small body, not much older than he was. However, it didn't take a genius to realize that if the creature had been trying to save it, it was much too late. The body was blackened with frostbite, and had taken on the leathery texture of seal jerky. Sokka swallowed hard, and then backed off slowly.

It was at that point that the images suddenly assaulted his mind. Sudden glimpses of trees, high mountains, kids his own age, and creatures much like the one before him flashed through his mind, and whispered conversations drifted through the chaos. He flailed, trying to get his bearings, and he dimly heard the creature's bellow before he plunged into the icy waters behind him.

* * *

_"_ _Gyatso, it's true, isn't it? I'm the Avatar?" The young boy sounded unsure and scared. Never before had he considered the possibility of something so impossible happening and he wrapped his arms carefully around himself to disguise the nervousness he felt._

_The older man looked back toward the boy, kind features drooping a bit in sadness before he wrapped one arm around him. "Yes, it is true. I would not have wished for you to find out that way, and certainly not so soon. You weren't supposed to find out until you were older."_

_The boy looked up. "What's going to happen now? I mean, I'm not ready! I can't be the Avatar yet."_

_Gyatso smiled then, and pulled the boy into a hug. They were walking through the halls, and they had avoided the topic of what was going on for the entire day. However, the boy had to know, and he could think of no other person that would tell him what was going to happen now. The elders couldn't understand. "I will still be here to guide and protect you. That hasn't changed."_

_"_ _And the others? I mean, they won't treat me any differently, will they?" The boy had to know. He wasn't ready. They had to know that!_

_"_ _I…"_

* * *

Sokka was drifting in a sea of chaos. He couldn't identify anything, and he opened his mouth to scream, but nothing came out. Then just as suddenly, the chaos vanished, and he found himself collapsing onto the ice, suddenly very cold and shivering violently. A tongue licked him, and then settled right beside him. Sokka felt the warmth, and cuddled into it, his breath coming in painful gasps.

He knew he had to get up, had to move, but exhaustion settled into his bones, along with the fatal cold of his homeland. It was then that he felt a much bigger tongue lick him, then a set of teeth grab him up. Vaguely he realized that the creature had picked him up, and he tried weakly to fight against it, hearing Kiba barking. Suddenly the world fell away, and had he been more coherent, he would have realized this was the first time he had flown.

It seemed ages before they landed, and he could hear screams and shouts for a healer. He felt some of the cold leave as he and his clothes were suddenly dry, and Katara's face came into view. She looked worried, and Sokka managed a weak grin. "Hey sis."

Katara looked ready to cry, and Sokka could only imagine what was causing this. He had stopped shivering, and he was starting to feel warm, too warm. Katara placed a hand atop his forehead, which burned like fire. Sokka whimpered and tried to back away, but something grumbled behind him and nudged him toward the other waterbender. "Don't worry. Gran-gran's going to get mom, and someone else went to get the healer. You're going to be fine."

The expression on her face spoke otherwise, and Sokka slipped out of consciousness before they arrived.

* * *

Kya stared worriedly at her son, her bottom lip in between her teeth as she listened to the healer's prognosis. Yuka had plenty of experience with the village, as well as the cold of their home, and her expertise could only be beaten by a waterbending healer. Sadly, there were no healing waterbenders in the Southern Water Tribe anymore, which left her staring at her mother-in-law in fear.

Kanna at least seemed to be watching the woman carefully as Yuka wrapped the blankets tighter around her grandson, and Kya busied herself with assisting. "So, he is going to be alright?"

Yuka shrugged, her expression somber as she looked toward Sokka. "That I can't say. His temperature keeps rising and falling steadily, almost like every time he takes a deep breath it increases. If it could raise and stay at a constant temperature, I wouldn't be so worried, but…"

Kanna nodded, and Kya reached out and ran her hand through Sokka's loose hair. He certainly felt frozen, and if it hadn't been for the fact that Sokka was still breathing, she would have thought he was dead from how grey he looked. She didn't want to lose her son like she'd lost her husband, but until he warmed back up, there wasn't much she could do. "It's okay. We just need to keep him warm and dry, right? That should help."

Yuka nodded. "Also try and feed him hot broth, tea, any hot liquids. That should help his temperature rise back up. If he starts shivering, encourage it. I would suggest movement but there's n-"

Yuka gasped, and drew her hands away. Kya too drew away, her brow tightening with worry as she stared. For just a moment, it seemed that one of Sokka's deep breaths had resulted in flames.

"What was that?" Kanna herself edged forward, her brow furrowed as she studied her grandson.

Yuka placed a hand on his forehead, then along inside of the blankets wrapped around him. "He feels warmer. How…?"

Kya stared at both women. "I could have sworn I saw flames just now but-"

Kanna shook her head, suddenly realizing the implications. "But he's a waterbender. The only way he could firebend is if…"

"Is if he's not just a waterbender." Yuka's voice wavered, and she looked at both women carefully. "I will have to inform Bato when he comes back from the hunt."

"What do we tell Sokka though? He has to know." Kya was gripping her son's blankets tight and swallowed carefully.

Kanna shook her head. "It would do no good to tell him now. No one can teach him, and we would have to send him north for any waterbending training. As it is, what firebender would teach a Water Tribe Avatar?"

The statement hung in the air between the three women, and Kya worried her lip again. This wasn't fair. Her son, the boy that denounced his own bending, was the Avatar. The moment seemed surreal, and she wished that Hakoda was still alive. He would have had a better idea of what to do, right?

* * *

Katara fidgeted outside of the igloo, hearing whispers and the low murmur of the healer speaking with her mother and grandmother. No one had said much, but the effect was still the same. Sokka hadn't woken up from what looked like a dunk in the ocean, and the healer was worried that he wouldn't. Her eyes traveled across the village until they rested on the strange creature that had appeared with her brother. It seemed tame, especially with the strange saddle on its back, but Katara and the other kids had been warned away from it by Bato.

It was strange. The village had spotted some sort of weird light before the creature had appeared with Sokka, and the girl wondered if this had anything to do with her brother. He was cold, much too cold, and Katara shivered as she considered her brother's state. If he'd fallen into the ocean, with how cold it was right now before the winter set in…

Apparently she didn't have long to wait, as Yuka exited the igloo, giving the young girl a nod. Katara didn't hesitate, rushing inside and blinking at the large fire at the center. Gran-gran was currently next to the fire, Sokka was wrapped in blankets beside her, and her mother was busying herself with the pot, stirring it and adding some fish to the concoction.

Kanna smiled and gestured Katara closer. "Hello child. I do believe a thank you is in order."

Katara sat down near her grandmother, then looked toward Sokka and back to Kanna. "Why a thank you, Gran-Gran?"

"I do believe you probably saved your brother's life." Kanna reached out and touched Katara's hand. "He should be just fine, though he'll need rest."

Katara worried her lower lip for a moment before she curled toward Gran-gran. "I'm glad. I didn't want to be the last waterbender."

Her grandmother didn't say anything, but Kya stepped toward her daughter and offered her a bowl of what looked to be stew, though thinner than usual. "You won't be. We just have to wait for Sokka to wake up."

She completely missed the look that her mother and grandmother gave each other. Instead, she decided to take her bowl and sit next to her brother, already berating him for jumping into the ocean.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Congrats, this fic officially got my longest chapter to date. Go me! I couldn't find a good place to stop it until the end. So, yeah, you get a very long chapter this update.

Sokka had to admit, it was weird waking up after nearly drowning and then freezing to death. He'd been stuck sitting in his family's hut for the better part of a week, suffering through a cold that he knew he'd gotten from his impromptu dunk into the ocean, but the Water Tribe boy couldn't deny that he was a bit disturbed by how he had fallen into the ocean to begin with. The cold he could deal with, his mom and grandmother stuffing him with as much hot soups and broths as they could, it was the odd thoughts drifting through his head that he couldn't.

Not that he'd admit that he'd freaked out over seeing a dead body to his sister or other female relatives. He had a reputation to uphold, after all. He was supposed to become a man. Men didn't scream and flail around when they came across dead bodies. They persevered and remained stoic the entire time. They certainly didn't have hallucinations about people that didn't exist or places they'd never visited before.

Therefore, Sokka remained silent, instead blaming his fall on the great white beast that had, for some odd reason, taken to sleeping right outside the igloo he and his family lived in. The flying bison certainly couldn't complain (not like Appa could, and how the heck he'd come up with the name as well as what Appa was, he couldn't figure out) and for some odd reason, Sokka didn't have as much of an urge to turn it into bison jerky as he thought he would have in other situations. He chalked it up to the whole weirdness of the situation itself, consoling himself and reminding himself that it had to be a result of the fall in the water. Nothing else made any sense.

What he didn't miss were the looks his Gran-gran and mom gave him when they thought he wasn't looking. Katara either never noticed them, or ignored them completely, but they looked like they were seeing a ghost. Which, Sokka reminded himself, wasn't possible since there were no such things as ghosts. However, the feeling persisted, and he just wished that they wouldn't look at him like he'd disappear at any moment.

By the time that he'd been allowed back out, five days had passed. Sokka had been going slowly stir-crazy during the time, and had jumped at the opportunity. He all but raced out of the hut, closely followed by Katara. Grinning, he took his first breath outside of the hut and wished for a minute that his nose wasn't so stopped up, but still stretched and gave a whistle for Kiba.

What he didn't expect was for a giant tongue to suddenly assault him, leaving half of him soaking wet and the left side of his hair sticking up. "Ugh, Appa! Did you really have to do that? Ew ew ew!"

"Who's Appa?" Sokka blinked and turned toward Katara, who was looking at him curiously.

"Um, the ten-ton flying bison? You know, the giant furball we've had for the past five days?" Katara still looked confused, and Sokka groaned. "What? That's his name."

Katara looked exasperated. "First, I didn't even know what a flying bison was until you told me, and second, how do you know what one is? It can't have come from the poles since we would have seen something that big before."

Sokka had to stop and think, considering his sister's words as he absently bent the slobber off of him. After all, he didn't want another case of hypothermia. He couldn't answer her question about how he knew any of it though, and that bothered him. How did he know, anyway? A stray thought came to mind when he remembered the whispers. Nope, he wasn't going to get into all that mess right now. It gave him too much of a headache. "I dunno. I just… knew."

The weirdness didn't end with his near-drowning, and Sokka found himself more and more growing frustrated. Frustrated with the fact that he could still hear the whispers, even months after the accident, frustrated with the fact that waterbending, while hard before, had become a nearly impossible task, and frustrated by Katara suddenly becoming a mother hen. It didn't help that when the men had come back from the hunt, his mom and grandmother had gone to discuss something with Bato, and now even Bato looked at him in that weird way.

His dreams had taken on an odd tone, with him constantly flying above the mountains, and it made him wonder if this was what it was like to suffer from the nastier effects of winter nights. Which, when they started, it hadn't even gotten into the dark part of the year quite yet. Sokka found that the more he dreamed, the stranger his dreams got, almost but not quite to the point where he didn't want to dream. He persevered though, convinced it was just an aftereffect of his dunk in the ocean. Nothing more.

Sokka, determined to escape the weird looks and the strangeness that seemed to be his life now, ignored it all and threw himself into the work the tribe needed. He'd become pretty adept at figuring that if no one knew he had any issues after, then they wouldn't bother him. No one did thankfully, so he let the incident drift to the back of his mind, eventually nearly forgetting it years later.

* * *

Of course it had to be when they went out to sea to fish that fate decided to screw with him again. He and Katara, having watched the men of their tribe disappear off to war, had become the de facto leaders of the tribe. Sort of. They were the eldest children, and as Sokka was the only male left, he had a job to do. He was supposed to be protecting and providing for the tribe, and while the women worked, Sokka took it upon himself to go out hunting, fishing, and teaching the younger boys of the village how to fight.

Not that Sokka had much experience in that department. He had only ever been in one battle before, and that particular battle had been the worst experience in his life. However, it was better than none, and the boys were supposed to be prepared for anything, especially since no one was left at the village to defend it. He didn't expect for them to be in a battle with firebenders, but the fact remained it was still a very real possibility and he didn't want to see what happened years ago to happen again.

He and Katara had been in a canoe, trying to catch fish. Of course, Sokka had been concentrating on getting the fish. Katara had decided to waterbend a fish out of the water. One wet Sokka later, and he was too busy wringing out his parka and glaring at his sister.

"Why is it that every time you play with magic water, I get soaked?"

Katara huffed, annoyed. "It's not magic. It's waterbending. You'd do it too if you ever bothered to practice."

"Yeah, like I need to know how to move water." As if being contrary to his own claims, he swirled his hands to throw the water overboard.

"See? Right there. You just waterbended Sokka. Admit it. You wanna learn." Katara fixed him with her most scolding glare, arms crossed as she stared down her brother. "Besides, you keep saying you want to protect the village. Why not learn to waterbend?"

Sokka crossed his own arms and harrumphed. "Yeah, no. We've had this argument how many times now? Every time you ask, I say no. Besides, what good is it going to do? If you haven't noticed, we're at the South Pole, with no masters around. Unless you know of some masters off in the ice, I'll just stick with Boomerang."

Katara snorted. "Well, at least I try to learn. What happens if a master shows up? Are you going to tell them you haven't even tried the basics yet?"

Sokka shrugged. "Hey, at least I'll be truthful."

"Whatever."

Silence reigned for a bit. Sokka decided to enjoy it for a moment. Katara, of course, had to break that moment of peace.

"You don't talk about Dad much, you know."

Sokka sighed, laying his spear across his lap so he could pinch the bridge of his nose. "Katara, please. Don't-"

"Don't what? It's been how long now, six years? Dad wouldn't have wanted this." Katara was studying him carefully, and Sokka shifted.

"There's probably a lot of things Dad didn't want, but they still happened. I don't think he would have liked Bato going to war, but that still happened. He probably would have hated even more the idea of us being left behind too." Sokka sighed, bringing his hand down to look at Katara. "I just don't want to talk about him, okay?"

Katara scowled but said nothing. He could tell she wanted to scold him again, like she always did, but he wasn't letting that get to him. He knew as well as she did that it wouldn't do any good. He was being as stubborn as an iceberg and she knew it.

Instead he considered what he was doing and looked back over the water to see if he could spot some fish. Maybe he could manage to spear some if his sister wasn't messing with the water? It was probably a futile hope, but Sokka was determined to bring something back.

His attention, however, was jarred the moment that he felt the canoe give a jolt. Sokka froze, and then paled considerably when he realized that the canoe was no longer sitting idly, but was instead moving swiftly down a current of water. Katara seemed to realize it too, and she started trying to gesture to possibly dislodge the craft from it. Sokka meanwhile was paddling as quickly as he could.

"Go left, go left!"

"I'm trying!"

Sokka didn't even try waterbending. He knew he wasn't skilled enough to attempt to get the current to slow down or even divert itself enough for him to get out of it. Instead, he had enough of a challenge avoiding the ice floes and hoping they didn't smash their canoe into tinder. Katara was trying, and he knew she was, but she didn't have nearly the skill to get them out of the current either.

The resulting crash of two floes sent them sprawling across the ice, and Sokka slid dangerously toward the edge. A quick glance behind him affirmed to him that Katara had managed to stay on the same piece of ice he was on, but now they both had a problem. They were stranded.

"Great. We're stranded." Sokka would have flopped over, but he didn't want a repeat of hypothermia. Instead, he rolled over and looked at his sister. "Any ideas on how we can get out of this mess?"

"Well, if you had helped me waterbend, we might not be in this situation." Katara crossed her arms and glared.

"Well, I hate to break it to you sis, but what's done is done. We need to find a way to get off of this ice and get back home." Sokka scanned the floes, trying to figure out a way out of the mess.

"What about over there? I think I might be able to freeze enough of the water to get there." Sokka turned and saw Katara pointing toward a lone iceberg. Suddenly a shiver ran down his spine as he realized that Katara meant to go to it.

"Can we go another way? I mean, some of these floes happen to be pretty close." Sokka really didn't want to go near any icebergs, not since his last encounter with one. Judging by the shape of this one, he wouldn't have been surprised if it held the same thing.

Katara however wasn't listening. "Oh come on Sokka. At least if we climb up it a bit, we can see where we need to go."

"Never listens to me," he mumbled, shaking his head. He eyed his sister. "Lemme guess, we both have to freeze the water."

"Well, if you want to get out of here, yes." Katara was already standing at the edge of the floe, gauging the distance. "There's no way I can get the ice thick enough for us otherwise."

" _Fine._ " Sokka rolled his eyes and joined Katara at the edge. "If this doesn't work, I'm going to say I told you so."

"If it does, you won't hear me complaining about your lack of waterbending for a week." Katara grinned. "Now, come on. Just copy what I do."

Katara swept her arms back and pushed forward, her arms extending. Sokka tried to follow, but found that he hopped in the middle. Grimacing, he tried it again with the same results. "This isn't working."

"You're hopping around. Stop that and keep your feet on the ice." Katara rolled her eyes now.

"I'm trying! Gimme a break!" Frustrated, Sokka threw his arms down instead, and blinked as the ice between the iceberg and the floe froze solid. "Um wow, that's never happened before."

Katara smirked. "I told you you could do it." She then tested the ice before hopping onto the frozen sheet. "Now come on! I bet we can see all the way home from the tip there."

Sokka shook his head. This was such a bad idea, he thought, but Katara wasn't listening. By the time he'd crossed onto the sheet, she was already on the iceberg, looking it over.

"Um, Sokka…" He frowned, hearing the tremble in her voice. "Nobody's been out this way in years, right?"

That bad feeling gripped him again as Sokka froze. "No, not to my knowledge. Uh, why?"

"Come here then, I think you need to see this."

"No I don't," he murmured, and would have run if not for the fact that there was literally nowhere else to run to. He swore there were whispers on the wind, and his feet felt like lead as he walked toward where Katara was. Cresting the edge of the iceberg, he looked first to Katara before looking toward where she was pointing.

His stomach turning in knots, Sokka stared at the blackened corpse he'd left years ago. Well, he hadn't left it per se; he'd been carried away from it more than likely. That didn't mean anything as he could hear the whispering getting louder. He shook his head, trying to get rid of it, but it just increased in volume. Then everything disappeared in a sea of blue.

* * *

Katara hadn't known what was going to happen when her brother came over with her. She certainly hadn't expected him to freak out like he did. He was shivering, and Katara could understand why. Whoever was in front of them, they were long dead, and she didn't like the idea of seeing a corpse either.

However, all of that was chased from her mind the moment that Sokka's body suddenly burst with light. His eyes glowing, a wind suddenly whipped around him, causing Katara to have to try and shield herself. "Sokka?" What was going on? She'd never seen anything like this before.

Sokka couldn't hear her. Whatever was going on with her brother, he seemed to lose the ability to do anything. Katara cast about, trying to think of something to snap him out of this, but was coming up empty. It wasn't until she heard a bellow above the cacophony that she realized that she might have help.

"Appa!" Boy was she glad to see the bison. She thought him weird and definitely alien, but at least Sokka had seemed receptive toward the strange creature. The rest of the village didn't know what to make of him, but Sokka had prevented him from being turned into meals. She didn't understand why, either. Sokka was crazy about meat.

The flying bison landed on the iceberg, in between Katara and her brother, and she couldn't help but feel relieved that Appa was taking the brunt of the wind. Her attention then turned toward her brother, and her heart plummeted as she realized he was now twenty feet in the air. "Appa, we need to get Sokka to stop this!"

Appa rumbled, and attempted to grab Sokka with his teeth. However, the winds buffeted the bison, preventing Appa from getting close. It was then that Katara got a crazy idea. Appa couldn't get close, but Sokka wouldn't hurt her, right?

Climbing on top of Appa's head, she swallowed nervously before she decided to launch herself off toward her brother. Catching him around the middle, they both crashed to the ground, rolling precariously toward the edge. Appa seemed to sense they were in danger of falling off, and sucked in a breath to drag them back.

Whatever had gotten ahold of Sokka, her knocking him down seemed to have snapped him out of it. He groaned, holding his head and sitting up slowly. He then looked at Katara with the most confused look on his face. "Um, what just happened?"

"I don't know." Katara admitted. "You just started glowing and then there was this wind that went crazy."

Sokka pressed the palms of his hands over his eyes, rubbing them before looking around. "I think we'd better get out of here."

"What about the body though? We can't just leave it."

Sokka bit his lip. "I um, I don't think I should be around it." At Katara's incredulous stare, he added, "This isn't the first time I saw it and it just, I dunno, something happened the last time too." Pressing his hands to his temples, he looked toward where he knew the body was, but Appa's bulk was blocking his view. "You think that it'd be a good idea to just send it to the ocean?"

Katara examined her brother carefully before nodding. Whatever had happened with Sokka, it had really freaked her out, and she wasn't keen on seeing a repeat. Standing, she made her way around Appa before kneeling to examine the body. The robes were unfamiliar, and Katara winced before she started searching through them.

"What are you doing?" Sokka had come around Appa and was standing a distance away from her, not quite looking at what she was doing but obviously paying attention nonetheless.

"I'm looking to see if there's a way I can find out who it is. We can't send it to the Ocean without something like that." Katara winced as her hand brushed against the body's flesh, but she shook it off and continued investigating.

"…Aang." When Katara looked back toward him in confusion, Sokka shuffled uncomfortably. "His name. It's Aang."

"How do you know that?"

"I don't know!" Sokka threw up his hands in frustration. "Look, can we please go back to the village where things make sense and I don't get all glowy? All of this? Well outside my comfort zone Katara."

Katara leaned back on her heels, frowning. Sokka had never been comfortable with spirit talk and she knew it, but this was like some sort of spirit tale. Shaking her head, she stood, deciding that maybe now wasn't the best time to deal with the body. "We'll leave this for later then. It just… It doesn't seem right to move it yet." Not to mention she wasn't about to freak her brother out anymore. Whatever had happened had freaked him out, and she wanted to know more about the first time he'd come across the body.

* * *

The trip back to the village was a silent affair, Sokka having taken the reins and directed Appa back. He had to admit, flying did have some advantages, such as going faster than boats could travel. It was how Sokka used Appa to go out further than he usually did to get food, especially since the ten-ton bison required a lot of food. Sokka was just glad that Appa spent a lot of the winter more north, where he could actually eat his fill on food up there. Seaweed could only go so far in the bison's diet, after all.

What had happened, though? All he remembered was that the whispers started, and then he couldn't see anything but blue, until some kid appeared and apologized. Sokka was pretty certain that he was going crazy now, and that he needed to talk to Yuka before it got worse. Especially since the kid was the same one he'd been dreaming about for years.

Sliding off the bison, he wobbled uncertainly before he was caught by Kiba, who had raced forward and was even now trying to nuzzle his way forward to assault Sokka with his tongue. Sokka chuckled without any humor before he looked over to where Katara was getting off. She'd tried to ask him about the body and how he'd come across it, but he'd refused to speak.

"Sokka?" Speaking of which, there was Katara now. He hoped she didn't ask him about any of it again. "I wanted to say sorry. You said it was a bad idea, and I didn't listen. I didn't realize you'd run into that before."

Sokka blinked and proceeded to poke his sister with the tip of his club. "Okay, who are you, and what have you done with my sister? You're not some kind of Fire Nation infiltrator, are you?"

Katara gave him an indignant look. "Fine. See if I care about you doing that again." She huffed and stormed off, though Sokka was certain that she'd be back with a vengeance.

Sighing, he ran his fingers through Kiba's fur again, trying to reorient himself on the here and now before he faced the rest of the tribe. He was certain that this latest incident regarding him was going to have the entire village gossiping like the last time. Except last time, he'd gotten a bad case of hypothermia. This time, he came back with an even weirder tale of dead bodies and weird glowing and winds out of nowhere.

Giving Appa one final pat, he decided to leave it for later. He was exhausted, and Kiba was doing pretty well for keeping him upright. He needed to sleep for a while, preferably for a decade if he could help it.

* * *

" _I'm sorry."_

_Sokka blinked, turning around in an ocean of blue to stare at the kid from his dreams. The kid was tattooed with blue arrows, and he was dressed in oranges and yellows. He had no hair, and Sokka suspected it was more to do with shaving his head than any natural baldness. "Sorry for what?"_

" _It wasn't supposed to happen like this. I messed up, and now you're stuck with the job." The kid scuffed one foot against the nonexistent ground before looking properly at Sokka. "I didn't mean to do that to you. I'm sorry."_

_Sokka felt something drop in his stomach and he frowned, brow furrowing at the boy. "What did you mess up?" A thought occurred to him, and he blinked. "Wait, you're the body, aren't you?"_

" _Oh, you found me? Wow, I must really look bad now, huh?" The kid rubbed the back of his head and let out a nervous chuckle. "I guess I should apologize for that too, huh?"_

" _Huh?"_

" _Well, Gyatso always said that you should never try to find your past incarnations' resting places, since it can get pretty bad." The kid grinned and leapt up and then floated into a seated position. "I guess that's why you keep going into the Avatar State."_

" _The what?" Sokka blinked, sure he'd heard the kid wrong. "Wait, you're my past incarnation? What?"_

" _Well yeah. The Avatar is always reincarnated." The boy stared. "Wait, you didn't know that?"_

_Sokka felt faint. "Know what? Which part?"_

" _Oh, um, well, maybe I'm not the best one to explain this." The kid rubbed the back of his head again, looking around. "I wonder if Roku's around to talk to you. He kind of left this whole thing a mess for me to deal with, but I got stuck. Which, I'm still sorry about that."_

" _I'm suffering from midnight sun madness, aren't I?" Sokka sat down with a thump, not even caring anymore if the surroundings had nothing to support him. "None of this can be real."_

" _Oh, it's real all right. I was told I was the Avatar by the Temple Elders, though Gyatso said I shouldn't have learned I was until I was sixteen." The kid grinned at Sokka. "You're almost there though, so maybe it's better for you? I mean, you got to be a kid and everything first."_

" _Yeah, sure, if being a kid meant trying to make sure your family survived the winter." Sokka shook himself. "I'm the Avatar?"_

" _Well, you wouldn't be talking to me if you weren't." The kid stuck out his hand, which Sokka took hesitantly. "I'm Aang. What's your name?"_

" _Sokka. Um, you do realize you should have picked someone else, right?" Sokka was reaching and he knew it. Maybe if he wished hard enough, he would stop being the Avatar._

_Aang looked confused. "Picked someone else? Um, it doesn't work that way, sorry."_

" _But I'm the worst bender in the whole South Pole! Heck, I don't even want to be a bender. Can't it all go away and I go back to hunting and stuff? That's what I'm good at." Sokka flailed, trying to illustrate his point._

" _You mean like go to that cute girl that was with you?" Aang blinked at Sokka._

_Sokka however sputtered and waved his arms around to banish the idea of Katara being cute from his mind. "Oh no, no, no, no, no. My sister is not cute. She's pushy and bossy and nitpicks everything and refuses to leave me alone about bending. If you had to choose an Avatar, sure, pick her, not me."_

_Aang shrugged. "Well, it's kind of too late now. Unless we could bend time, but that doesn't work." Aang then gave Sokka a pleading look. "Look, I'm sorry, but I can't change who was chosen to be the Avatar. You're the greatest hope the world has right now."_

" _Way to pile on the responsibility. You know, I was just happy being a nice, normal person, you know."_

" _And I was happy being just a kid and having fun." Aang suddenly looked older than just a kid, making Sokka wonder just how old he really was. "Life kind of doesn't work that way."_

_Sokka groaned, holding his head in his hands. "Well, okay then. What do we do now?"_

_Aang relaxed, and bit his lip. "Well, you have to master all four elements first."_

_Sokka looked up in horror. "What? I don't even waterbend! I can't! How am I supposed to learn all four elements?"_

" _But you have to!" Aang looked hurt. "I know you can do it. There's no one else that can!"_

_Sokka felt desperate now. "But even if I manage to learn the others, there's no one that can teach me airbending! I mean, c'mon! Gimme a break!"_

_Aang looked sad then, drawing himself together into a ball. "I'm sorry Sokka. You have to though. You'll figure it out. I mean, you do have Appa, and airbenders learned from sky bison. You can do it." Sokka made to protest further, but Aang started fading from sight. Reaching out, it felt like he was trying to grab a gust of wind before Aang disappeared completely._

* * *

Sokka awoke with a start, looking around before he realized he was alone within the hut. The Avatar. The dream kid stated he was the Avatar. His arms wrapped around his knees as he chewed his lip. Why him? He was an awful bender, he preferred reality to fantasy, and he certainly wasn't spiritual like Katara was. Ugh, this was a nightmare waiting to begin, he knew it.

He stood from his bedding, stretching and grabbing up a change of clothes before he ventured out of the hut. Glancing around, he didn't see Katara anywhere, but he did spot his mom and grandmother working on some baskets. He decided to approach, thinking if anyone knew about all of this crazy happening to him, it was Gran-Gran.

"Hey Mom, Gran-Gran, hypothetically, what would happen if someone just woke up one day and found out they were the Avatar? Just hypothetically." Hopefully they didn't get the impression that he was asking for himself.

Kya stared at him for a moment, and Sokka fidgeted. She then turned to look at Gran-Gran, who was studying him quietly before she sighed. "When did you find out, Sokka?"

Sokka felt like the ground fell away from underneath him as he stared before sitting down heavily. "Oh man, you mean it wasn't a crazy dream? I'm really it?"

Kya closed her eyes before looking at Sokka again. "It was when you had hypothermia. We were convinced you were going to die, but then you breathed fire."

"I breathe fire? What?"Sokka's eyes then narrowed. "Wait, you knew for the past two years? Why didn't anyone tell me these things?" He waved his arms for emphasis, before groaning and covering his face again. His brain needed to reboot. He'd developed midnight sun madness. It was literally the only explanation that made sense.

"How did you find out?" Kanna's eyes examined her grandson carefully, before Sokka realized that he hadn't said how. It was going to sound bad and he knew it.

"I um, I had a dream about some bald kid apologizing and telling me that I used to be him, or he used to be me? I dunno, it was really confusing." Sokka shrugged. "But they said I was the Avatar and, um, why are you looking at me like that?"

His mom and grandmother were staring at him, and Sokka shifted nervously. "Sokka, you dreamt you were the Avatar?" Kanna's eyes were sharp as she frowned.

"Well, yeah, I guess so. I think he was the last airbending Avatar. He didn't tell me much other than I need to master bending." He left out the fact that he'd pleaded with the other kid that they'd made a mistake and that they should take it back. No one needed to know that.

"He never said what happened to him?" Kya blinked as she looked at Kanna before looking back at Sokka.

"No, he just said he messed up and was stuck." He then paled, realizing what else he'd mentioned. "He, um, he also died. I accidentally found him two years ago in ice."

Kya looked worried. "Sokka, there's a pretty big reason we never told you. When we found out, we were shocked, but we then realized something. You're not safe here."

"What does me being safe have to do with knowing?"

She placed a hand over Sokka's. "Because if you knew, then there was a greater chance that other people would find out. We've heard that the Fire Nation has been searching all over the world for the Avatar. With no benders to teach you, you're not capable of dealing with them on your own."

Sokka snorted. "So what? I basically have to hide that I'm the Avatar? Mom, I know you protect me from a lot of things, but honestly? What if I go all glowy during one of the raids?"

"That would be why Bato felt it best if during his travels, he tried to find teachers for you." Kanna sighed, rubbing her forehead. "Trust us when we say that he did mean no harm, and neither did we. We just didn't feel that there was much we could do, not until you were able to protect yourself while you trained."

Sokka considered it for a moment. "So there's not much anyone can do right now. I can understand that. Just, um, Mom, Gran-Gran? Maybe tell me next time? That way I can avoid Aang's corpse?" He then paused. "Or does that make it my corpse? Ugh, this is too confusing. I'm going to go train the kids."

He wasn't lying either. The idea that he had a body lying around that belonged to his past life made his head hurt, and he decided it was best that he ignore the idea for now. He proceeded to deal with the group of kids that he was used to, unaware that his life was going to get a lot tougher.

* * *

Katara sighed as she carried down a basket filled with food to the village below. Ever since her brother had his freak out, she hadn't been able to talk to him about it. It was one thing for Sokka to avoid bending, she knew he'd do that, but it another for him to avoid her completely. Though, part of that avoidance was because Sokka had dropped off to sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow last night and he hadn't woken up until late in the morning. Katara wondered how much of what happened to her brother wore him out to the point he was pretty comatose for fourteen hours straight.

Nevertheless, she could see him out now dealing with the younger boys in the village. She could tell he was in a crabby mood judging by the fact that he was being short with some of the younger kids, but so far, he wasn't acting any differently that she could see. She still saw her silly, hyperactive, crazy brother, and whatever happened to him obviously hadn't affected him too much.

Shaking her head, she went about the rest of her day, preparing things and getting things ready for when they had to settle in for the winter. Honestly, she had other things to worry about than what was wrong with her brother. She could worry about it later. It wasn't until later, when her mother had sent her to go get Sokka for lunch, when she spotted something on the horizon.

It looked like a dirty black smudge, and she decided to climb the snow wall near the village to examine it properly. It wasn't for a good few minutes that she realized that she was staring at a ship, one she hadn't seen in years.

Suddenly forgetting all about lunch, she raced down the wall toward the village below. "There's a ship! A Fire nation ship!"

Her mother had come out of the hut, looking toward where Katara was coming from. She disappeared back in, only to reemerge moments later with Gran-Gran. Together, the two women started calling for the other women to get people to safety.

Sokka, who had just dismissed the young boys to go to lunch, had turned to look in the direction Katara was. Frowning, he raced up the wall, Katara deciding to follow right behind as she refused to hide behind something. Sokka had stopped, but she could easily see how pale her brother looked as he looked at the ship bearing down on their village.

"It's my fault…"

"What?" Katara stared at Sokka for a moment, sure she'd heard wrong. "What do you mean, your fault? You haven't even left the village since we got back. How is this your fault?"

Sokka ignored her, instead racing toward their hut. Katara was confused and frustrated. Why was it that everything about her brother lately left her frustrated? Clenching her jaw, she stormed into the tent after him. "Sokka, what are you…?" She trailed off, watching what he was doing. "You can't seriously think you're going to fight them alone."

"Bato left me in charge of defending the village. I have to Katara." Sokka grabbed up his boomerang and club, then slipped his machete over his shoulder. He hadn't put on war paint, but she realized it didn't matter. He'd have no time.

"Well, not alone you're not." Katara stared him down as she grabbed one of his spears before frowning as she realized she'd never fought with one before.

Sokka groaned. "Ugh, fine. You shouldn't even be in this anyway. You're a girl. But, if you really want to do this…" He grabbed the spear from her and readjusted her grip. "You really can't fight, but if you have to, just jab it at the other guy. Seriously though? Don't even try attacking. If something happens to me, yeah, but don't."

Katara glared. "What makes you think something's going to happen to you? After all, we're fighting together."

"Can we not get into a fight _before_ we have a fight?" Sokka palmed his face before shooting a look at his sister. "Look, they're probably after waterbenders again. If I have to…" Sokka swallowed but shook his head. "Look, if I have to, I'll say I'm one. Maybe they'll leave you alone, but if not, then if I go down…"

"You're not going down." Katara said it with as much conviction as she could put into her voice. "I'm not going to let that happen."

Before Sokka could reply, a crash sounded from the direction of the wall. The siblings exchanged a look before Sokka grabbed up his other spear and raced out of the hut. Katara followed, ignoring the look the other women gave her. Sokka may have been the only adult male left in the tribe, but that didn't mean he had to deal with everything by himself.

She stood by Sokka, even though he kept on trying to shoo her behind him. The ship, which had just been a tiny shape on the horizon when she had looked, had cracked the ice and knocked down a portion of the wall. The bow of the ship was parked within the wall in the middle of the clearing before the village. Looking at it, she felt small before the ship, but kept her grip on the spear in her hand. She wasn't going to let the Fire Nation have their way.

A creak was the only warning either sibling got before the front of the ship dropped into a ramp, causing Katara and Sokka to dive to either side. Sokka recovered first, standing quickly to face the invaders. A group of soldiers descended the ramp, one of whom was an older man, while another was a short person with a weird helmet in front.

Sokka didn't hesitate and charged, Katara standing open-mouthed behind him in horror. The person in front easily blocked Sokka's spear thrust, snapping the weapon in half and tossing Sokka over the side of the ramp. It didn't stop her brother though, as Sokka dug himself out of the snow and threw Boomerang at the leader.

Katara shouldn't have felt like giggling when the man ducked only to have the projectile hit him in the helmet on its return trip. The older man managed to catch it when it bounced, studying it curiously for a moment before he returned his attention to the scene. By this point, Sokka had run at the person in front, trying to strike him with his club. A sound roundhouse knocked Sokka into the snow again, and the person in front seemed to be getting annoyed.

"Where is the Avatar? I know he's hiding somewhere."

Katara's eyes widened, and she glanced back to notice that not only her, but her village had come out to stare at the spectacle. She didn't know how to answer him though. The Avatar was a legend, a person that hadn't been seen in a hundred years. If they had visited the South Pole, they'd never known it.

A hand shot out, and Gran-Gran was snatched from the group in front. The person in front demanded again, "Let me ask again. He'd be this age, master of all elements. Where is he?" He shoved Kanna back at the group, and Kya caught her again.

Suddenly a wave of ice erupted from the side, and people stared over to who had caused it. Sokka stood firm, but Katara could tell he was terrified. "Don't you dare touch any of them!"

The ice wave, while it caught him by surprise, didn't seem to slow the man down. Growling, he lashed out with a foot, catching the wave with a blast of his own fire. It broke apart, and Sokka was again thrown back.

"Sokka!" Katara acted without thinking. She threw the spear she was holding, only for the man to kick it out of the way. He then stormed over and grabbed Katara by the braid, yanking her in front of everyone.

"No!" Katara looked over at Sokka, who looked like he was going to get sick. "If we tell you who it is, will you leave the village in peace?"

"Sokka, no…" Gran-Gran looked shocked, and her mother didn't look any better. If Katara didn't know any better, she'd have thought they were afraid of what Sokka was going to say.

Suddenly pieces started falling into place in Katara's mind, and the man – no, teen, she could see him better now that she was up close – considered Sokka for a moment. At a nod, Sokka relaxed his stance, but looked like he was going to his execution instead. "It's me. I'm the Avatar."

"No…" Katara held one hand in front of her mouth, but the teen holding her paid her no attention. He shoved her toward her mom, who caught Katara and was instead staring in horror at the scene in front of her. Sokka, her stupid, moronic, boneheaded brother, he was the Avatar?

"You're him? You're the Avatar?" The teen sounded as shocked as Katara felt.

"Going all glowy, weird whispering only I can hear, ghosts that don't stay ghosts and instead tell me I was them in the past, and firebending? I think that covers a lot of it, don't you?" Katara was going to hit Sokka. She was going to tear open all the seams in his pants and make him eat seaweed for a month. Why was he doing this?

"Take him." At the order, several of the soldiers with the teen grabbed Sokka. The teen gave Sokka a look. "If you're lying…"

"I'm not. The last Avatar froze in the ice." The look in Sokka's eyes was hard, and he glared at the other teen.

Jerking his head, the teen turned and started toward the ship. Sokka was shoved ahead of him by the soldiers holding him, and Katara felt her knees give out. The last she saw of her brother before the ship closed was Sokka glancing back, looking just as scared as she felt.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's this? I update without there being years in between? I must be sick or something!
> 
> Ahem! Anyway, not as long as last chapter, but still, good place to leave off before I start in with some of the other things happening.

_Earth, Fire, Air, Water..._

_Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. Then, everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked. Only the Avatar, master of all four elements, could stop them, but when the world needed him most, he vanished..._

_A hundred years later and there's a new Avatar. A Water Tribe warrior by the name of Sokka. He may be hardheaded and stubborn, and he has much to learn about bending in general, but I know that he can stop the war. After all, I believe in him, even if he doesn't believe in himself..._

Katara stormed through the village. Stupid Fire Nation. Stupid teen. Stupid Sokka. She cursed everything she could think of, because as far as she could tell, there wasn’t much she could do. Well, save for what she was doing now.

Kiba was following behind her, and for a moment, Katara felt sad that she was going to have to leave him behind. He was Sokka’s polar dog, and the dog had gone searching every corner of the village as soon as he had come in with Appa. Now the bison was lounging and watching her quietly, while Kiba whined as he darted off to sniff at another section of the village before returning to Katara’s side.

She entered her hut and grabbed up a pack before shoving several changes of clothes inside. She then turned and grabbed up some other items as well, thongs of leather and a length of rope that she’d seen Sokka work on a week before. Soon she had the bag packed with what she thought she’d need before she exited the hut.

Casting about for a moment, she noted that the people in the village were moving around. People were taking down tents and moving supplies around. Katara then realized they were moving, and she went out to seek her mom. “You’re moving the village?”

“We have no choice.” Kya motioned toward the cracked ice. “The ice is unstable now. We need to relocate.”

“I’m going after them.”

Kya, who had been in the middle of taking down some furs, turned to stare horrified at Katara. “You can’t. It’s too dangerous.”

Katara met her mother’s horrified look with one of determination. “Too dangerous even for Sokka? I mean, he’s the Avatar. Who is going to be in more danger, him or me?”

“I can’t lose you both.” Kya reached out and hugged Katara to her. “I lost your father, and now maybe even Sokka. I can’t lose you too.”

“You won’t.”

“But what if I do?” Kya held Katara out at arm’s length and looked deep into Katara’s eyes. “Look, maybe we can send someone to find Bato and he can look for your brother. You can’t-“

A hand descended on Kya’s arm and Kanna cleared her throat. Katara hadn’t even seen her grandmother approach, but the older woman seemed steady as she looked from Katara to Kya. “”Let her go Kya.”

“But-“

Kanna studied her granddaughter with a careful expression, and Katara fidgeted under her gaze. “I do believe you’re fighting against my own stubborn streak. Spirits know I’ve made some rash decisions in my life.”

Katara wanted to ask what her grandmother meant, but she currently had more pressing things to worry about. “Wait, really? You’re letting me go?”

Kanna nodded, looking over to Kya briefly who was holding both hands to her mouth in worry. “We can no more hold you here than we can hold the tides. Just, be careful, and be safe.”

Katara hugged the two of them then, drawing strength from the two for what she was doing. Pulling back, she swallowed back tears. “I will be. I’ll be back with Sokka too. I promise.”

“I know you will. Be safe, my little waterbender. And tell your brother to be nice to you, and that he must be safe as well.” Kanna pulled Katara back into a hug before letting her go.

Kya however had wandered over to the side and picked up Sokka’s club and spear from the snow. “Here.” She handed both to Katara before pulling her into a hug. “Take these with you. You know your brother. He’s going to refuse to waterbend until he either gets a teacher or until he’s cornered.” She pulled back and smiled sadly. “I’m going to miss the both of you. You two had better come back or I swear I’m going to get your father’s old machete out and singlehandedly take care of things.”

Katara laughed a bit before the weight of the situation struck her. She was leaving home, alone, and she didn’t know when she’d be back, if she was even going to be able to come back. She then shoved that thought out of her mind roughly. If Sokka was the Avatar, he could change things. He could save the world, and Katara wasn’t about to let him do it alone. She wasn’t lying when she told him he didn’t have to do it alone.

Turning, she went to pack the rest. She was going to have a long journey ahead of her.

* * *

Sokka had been handled roughly the moment he was led onto the ship. His hands had been bound behind his back, and he was shoved onto the deck of the ship, probably to see his home for the last time. He’d been completely disarmed, and he ground his teeth at the loss of anything he could use to defend himself. He then was turned around to face the person that had captured him.

The first thought that entered Sokka’s mind was that he was young, probably his age if not a bit older. The second thought was that the scar that stretched across the other male’s face looked like it had hurt, and Sokka wondered what firebender had stuck his fist in the guy’s face to give him that scar. His attention was then torn away from his musings by the other teen speaking. “So, you’re the Avatar. For the most powerful bender in the world, you don’t look like much.”

“Hey, I’m just as surprised by it as you are.” Sokka gave a noncommittal shrug. “Besides, you’d just attacked a village full of women and children. Like I’d let you stick around to hurt them.”

The other teen turned then, looking up toward the tower. “Helmsman, set a course for the Fire Nation. We’re going home.” He then glanced back to Sokka. “Not that you’d understand being away from home.”

“I’m sure I’ll be a fast learner then,” Sokka replied dryly. The other teen didn’t reply, but instead directed his captors to take Sokka down below.

Sokka had to fight to keep his footing, but managed not to stumble as they descended the stairs. When they finally closed the door behind him, Sokka looked around the cell. It honestly wasn’t much. Three walls, all metal, and he could guess that he maybe had enough room to walk five paces from one wall to the other. A simple cot was attached to one wall, with what Sokka assumed was a pretty thin blanket on top, while a ring stuck out of the wall. It was that ring that he was currently attached to with a thick chain. Manacles currently held him, and when he tested if he could separate his arms, he found he couldn’t. They weren’t taking any chances with the idea he might escape, he thought.

Sighing, he collapsed backward onto the cot. Less than a day, and he was already the worst Avatar in existence, he thought morosely. What kind of Avatar lets themself be captured?

Obviously the type that was never trained. Sokka could hazard a guess that he was probably the first Avatar that didn’t even master the basics of his native bending before finding out what he was. Either the world had a sick sense of humor (which about matched his life thus far) or he had the worst luck in existence (and also matched his life. Huh, who knew?).

In any case, he decided to spend some time trying to figure out how to get out of the mess he was in. He was going to dismiss the idea of including waterbending in his plan, since it was safe to assume that one, his captors knew he was one, and two, he’d never heard of a waterbender returning to the South Pole after being captured. He didn’t have mobility with his hands because he was chained to the wall, but he could always see if he could take off his boots and give his toes a workout, right? The bars that made up the fourth wall seemed pretty solid, but maybe he could figure out something to do with the hinges if he was lucky?

He spent probably a good several hours trying to figure out the various weaknesses of the cell along with what he could do with them, and ultimately decided that most of his ability to escape hinged on the use of his hands and being separated from the wall. By that time, a new problem arose in the form of a loud gurgling sound. It was at that point he realized he hadn’t eaten since probably right before he fell asleep the day before. Snacks, sure, since he’d managed to have a bit of seal jerky before he worked on training the kids, but besides that? Nada.

“Ugh!” He flopped down on the cot after what seemed like his hundredth circuit around the cell. “Why couldn’t they have come after dinner or something? I might have had food by then.” He lifted his arms and let them flop against his lap. “The least they could do is offer some sort of meals on here, right? I mean, I came quietly and didn’t try to go all Avatar on them.”

Suddenly the sound of the hatch opening had him sitting up and looking toward the door that led to the rest of the ship. He saw one of the guards letting in the portly old man who carried a tray. The smells from it caused Sokka’s mouth to water and he shook his head. He was in enemy territory right now. They could have drugged the food or something and here Sokka was thinking they should feed him. How stupid was he being right now in forgetting that?

“Ah, you are awake.” The old man waited for a stool and table the other guard brought in before he sat down with a sigh of relief. “I also assume you are probably hungry. The cook on board happens to be very skilled in his duties. You would not mind if I shared a meal with you, would you?”

“Like I’m going to take something to eat from you.” Sokka tried to cross his arms, but failed and glared instead. “It could be poisoned for all I know.”

The old man didn’t seem insulted. Instead, he nodded thoughtfully at Sokka. “We could have poisoned it, yes, but my nephew’s orders were to capture the Avatar, not to kill him. As it seems you are him, it does no one any good to poison you.”

Sokka looked at him dubiously, but settled on the floor in front of the old man. “Your nephew?” He accepted a cup of tea from the old man before taking a sip. Blinking, he then downed the rest of the cup. It had been surprisingly good, after all.

“My nephew, Prince Zuko. He’s been searching for the Avatar for three years, you know. I am glad that maybe he might begin to relax now that he has completed his objective.” He passed over a bowl of rice and chopsticks, which Sokka took carefully.

“So, um, the angry jerk is your nephew and a prince?” Sokka frowned as he tried to turn that information over in his head. “Why did he have to find the Avatar?”

The old man gave Sokka a reproachful look. “That is not my story to tell. Suffice to say, he has been eager to return home since it was assigned to him.”

Sokka nodded, doubting the old man would give him any reasons that would become ammo later. “So, if you’re his uncle, and he’s a prince, what does that make you?”

“Me?” The old man gave a chuckle. “I see you have not been out of the South Pole. I am Iroh, son of the late Fire Lord Azulon and prince of the Fire Nation.”

Sokka had his chopsticks halfway to his mouth before he paused, staring. “I’m not just eating with the enemy; I’m eating with the head of the enemy. That’s just great.”

The prince didn’t look bothered by Sokka’s statement, instead digging into his own meal with an air of tranquility. “I know what your people must think, that we are all monsters, but that is not true.”

“Why are you doing this? Why did you decide to come down and talk to me anyway?” Sokka narrowed his eyes at Iroh.

“Well, it has been a century since anyone has claimed that they have sat and had a peaceful conversation with the Avatar, and I assume it does get boring down here with no one to talk to.” Iroh smiled broadly then. “Besides, I haven’t had the pleasure of speaking with one from the Water Tribes before, and this seems as good an opportunity as any.”

Sokka continued to eye the older man. “So it’s more because of what I am rather than who I am?”

Iroh was already shaking his head. “No, it is called getting to know you.”

Sokka decided to busy himself with eating for a few moments, glad that his stomach wasn’t screaming in complaint anymore. During that time, he decided to think over the older man. He seemed nice enough, if a bit weird, but Sokka knew that his sister would argue that he was just as weird. His stomach twisted with worry for Katara, who he imagined was confused and terrified for him. “I’m never going to see the South Pole again, am I?”

“That all depends on what happens now. I do not know what my brother intends to do with you once we are back in the Fire Nation, but it is a likely guess that you will not.” Iroh set his dinner aside, frowning in thought. “Though, I do say we have quite a long journey together. Who knows what may happen in that time?”

Sokka stayed silent then, his expression troubled as he continued to eat. He didn’t know what the Fire Nation had planned with him, but he knew it couldn’t be good. After all, from everything he had heard from his childhood, the Avatar was supposed to bring balance to the world. Even Aang had told him he was the world’s greatest hope. Suddenly he found he wasn’t as hungry as he thought he was and put the food down.

Iroh chose that moment to speak. “There was an alternative reason for me to speak with you.” When Sokka looked up, he noticed Iroh still studying him. “You claimed that you had bended fire. I wish to know how you had accomplished that.”

“Oh, um, it’s kind of complicated?” Sokka shrugged, not sure how to explain it. “I don’t remember doing it, but my mom and Gran-Gran said I had breathed fire once. I um, I accidentally fell into the ocean and caught hypothermia. I wouldn’t have survived if I hadn’t.”

“I wish to see this then.” Iroh folded his arms into his sleeves and watched Sokka.

“Uh, sure?” Oh boy. He didn’t even remember how he did it, but he knew it had to do with breathing, right? He tried concentrating for a moment, then exhaled. When he looked at Iroh, he could already tell he hadn’t breathed fire, but he could always try again, right?

“Firebending comes from the breath. Breathe in through your nose, and out through your mouth.” Iroh gave him a small smile. “Now try again.”

Sokka still found the request odd, but didn’t see the harm in it. After all, he had told them he was the Avatar, so he didn’t see the harm in showing them he could bend more than magic water. Swallowing, he concentrated again, then took a deep breath before exhaling. Something akin to a warm sun seemed to bloom in his gut, and when he looked at Iroh again, he noticed the old man was nodding. “I did it, didn’t I?” And wasn’t that just great? Just when he thought he probably had bluffed his way onto the ship with a convincing lie, the lie turned out to be true.

“Yes you did.” Iroh nodded. “But unfortunately, that is all the further I can actually teach you. To teach you more would amount to treason.”

Sokka nodded, slumping. “Of course it would. Nice to know that Aang wasn’t lying then.” At Iroh’s confused expression, Sokka went on to explain. “The last Avatar. He said I was the Avatar, but I didn’t exactly believe him. Even after Mom and Gran-Gran said it, I still didn’t want to believe. It’s just, this is so wrong.”

He buried his face in his hands, trying not to think about any of it. He’d only just discovered what he was, and now it didn’t matter in the least bit what he did or said. He’d already failed and there wasn’t much he could do. He’d tried not thinking about it while he was training the kids, but that didn’t stop the fact that it happened. Now it looked like he was never going to be anything but a captive.

“Avatar Sokka.” Sokka groaned and looked up at the older man, wishing he hadn’t just called him that. “I do not know what I can offer in regards to advice, especially as I am counted one of your enemies. But, please realize neither I nor my nephew mean you any harm.”

“Except to take me captive and deliver me to the Fire Lord.” Sokka couldn’t help the note of bitterness that infected his voice. “No offence, but I think I could have done without the kidnapping part.”

Iroh was silent for a moment, then quietly stood and picked up the tray of food. “I truly am sorry about all of this.” He then turned and left the brig, leaving Sokka alone with his thoughts.

* * *

“Ugh!”

Katara was about to just throw the entire pack she had gathered together off the saddle, thinking this had to be the worst timing in the world. She’d packed up Appa, and now she had to contend with the fact that Kiba had decided to park himself in the saddle as well. The polar dog was big, and she wasn’t sure if Appa could reliably carry both him and Katara. No, she had to figure out a way to get the dog off before she attempted to get Appa to fly, provided she actually remembered how her brother had figured it out.

Then again, if what Sokka had said was true, he’d run into the body before. Was that how Sokka knew how to ride Appa? Had he found the kid dying or something and they gave him instructions? Katara couldn’t ask Sokka, and she was bound and determined to find out from him when she saw him again. No if, but when. She refused to think that there was a chance she’d never see her brother again.

She glared at Kiba and pointed off the saddle. “Kiba, off! You’re not coming! I don’t care how much you give me puppy eyes, it’s not happening!”

Kiba huffed instead and glared at Katara before pointedly lying down. Katara buried her face in her hands, deciding that she needed a breather before she decided that Sokka really didn’t need his dog. Looking from Appa to Kiba, she shook her head. “Fine, but if Appa can’t fly, it’s your fault.”

Glaring at the polar dog, she settled herself where Sokka usually sat on Appa and grabbed up the reins. Trying to remember what Sokka usually said to get the bison to fly, she gave the reins an experimental shake. “C’mon Appa. Let’s go get my brother.”

Appa lurched to his feet and started plodding along. Katara frowned. He didn’t seem to be intent on flying, and she gave a glare at the unrepentant Kiba. “I know you can do it Appa. C’mon, let’s fly.”

Appa gave a small bellow, but still made no move to start flying. Katara then started wracking her brain. Maybe it was a command? She’d heard plenty of them over the years from the mushers of the sled dog teams. “Appa, hike!”

That only caused Kiba to perk his ears up and trot his way over to where Katara was. She groaned and then realized she was going about this wrong. Appa was a sky bison, not a polar dog, and Sokka used a different command to make him fly. Suddenly feeling more confident, she gave the reins a snap and stated, “Yip yip!”

Apparently that was the command that Appa had been waiting for. He gave a bellow and took a few steps before surging into the air, causing Katara to fall back and Kiba to skitter sideways before he flopped back against the side of the saddle. Realizing this, she tugged on the reins. “Whoa Appa, land!”

Grateful to be back on the ground, she glanced back to Kiba, chewing her lip before she made her way over to the polar dog. “Okay, let’s not do that again. Where did Sokka put your harness, anyway?”

Kiba just stared at her and she sighed. “Hold on, I’m going to find it.” She hopped off the bison and ran back to the village. Most of the tents were down, and it was a matter of packing away the various small things before they moved. Giving her mom and grandma a wave, she went through the packs they were working on before she came across Kiba’s harness.

Getting back to the bison, she climbed onto Appa and gave him a quick pat before she went to work. Soon enough, Kiba was secured and Katara sighed. He didn’t need it when they were on the ground, obviously, but she wasn’t about to let the canine fall off while they were in the air. Sokka would kill her for that.

“All right. Appa, yip yip.” Again Appa surged into the air, and Katara smiled. Now she was on her way to find Sokka. Then she could sic Kiba on them for stealing her brother to begin with. After all, the polar dog had refused to leave, so she figured she might as well take advantage of that.

* * *

Zuko stormed through the ship, his mind already set on his destination. His uncle had visited the Avatar. He’d heard about it from some of the ship’s crew, and he wasn’t happy. He doubted that his uncle would jeopardize his chances at returning home, but the fact was his uncle didn’t exactly take much seriously since his retirement years ago. As such, he treated Zuko’s banishment like a pleasure cruise.

Grinding his teeth, he got to his uncle’s cabin and knocked loudly. “Uncle, open up. We need to talk.” He patted himself on the back. He was keeping his temper under control.

Iroh opened the door and looked at Zuko curiously. “Why Prince Zuko, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?” He stepped aside, allowing Zuko to enter before he settled himself down at his desk. Zuko could already see the scroll his uncle had gotten at the last port open before him.

“Why did you visit the Avatar?”

Iroh didn’t look up, but continued to study the scroll with interest. “I was merely offering Avatar Sokka the chance to have something to eat and companionship. It is doubtful he will have much more of that when we get back to the Fire Nation.”

“I don’t care what the Avatar wants. He’s a prisoner!” Zuko snorted steam.

Iroh merely glanced up. “Yet even prisoners deserve some compassion lest you become the monster they believe you are for holding them captive.” Iroh folded his hands into his sleeves. “Or was that your intention?”

Zuko rolled his eyes. “He’s a Water Tribe barbarian and a waterbender. We’re already monsters to them.”

“And yet you continue to not realize that should the war end and the Fire Nation stand victorious, how they view us will determine how much trouble they give us in the future.” Iroh turned completely now, hands folded in place. Mentally Zuko groaned, knowing that his uncle was about to give him another lesson in politics. “While they view us as monsters, they will never accept Fire Nation rule, but a bit of kindness goes a long way in mending hurts caused by war.”

“They’re peasants! They should accept our rule regardless of whether or not they think we’re monsters!”

“And yet,” Iroh continued calmly, “regardless of whether or not they are peasants, they should still be treated with the same respect as any man. It is a tyrant that expects absolute compliance from his defeated foes. A wise ruler takes into considerations how they can win over their foes instead.”

Zuko narrowed his eyes and stared at his uncle. “So you want me to play nice with the Avatar while he’s with us? Why? He’s the biggest enemy the Fire Nation has.”

“Comfort to a defeated enemy is a way to garner respect from those watching. While you might think it insignificant and useless, any action taken reflects on how you rule in the future.” Iroh turned then, going back to his scroll briefly before looking back toward Zuko. “Then again, these may be the musings of an old man.”

Zuko snorted and pivoted on his heel. “This is ridiculous. Next time you go for a visit, tell me! Or better yet, _don’t!”_

He didn’t stick around to listen to his uncle’s next words, instead going down to find the Avatar in question. He just couldn’t believe his uncle. First visiting the prisoner, then telling him how to behave to prisoners of war? Ugh!

It didn’t take him long to find the Avatar either, being in the same place that the other teen had been placed when he got onto the ship. He expected to find the boy being in some kind of contemplative meditative trance. What he didn’t expect was for the other teen to be flopped face-first on the cot, moaning for whatever reason.

“Don’t tell me you’re sick. The Avatar doesn’t get sick!”

Blue eyes fixed on Zuko, and then rolled as the Avatar straightened up to glare properly from a cross-legged position. “Oh really? Nice to know my hypothermia a couple of years ago was all in my head.”

Zuko ignored the comment and clenched his fists. “What did you and my uncle talk about? Answer me!”

A look of defiance crossed the Avatar’s face. “I’m sorry, I don’t answer to angry jerkbenders.”

“What did you say?”

The Avatar shrugged. “If you really have to know, ask him. Better yet, if you let me go, I might answer you.”

“Not happening.” Zuko’s glare could have melted steel, but it didn’t look like the Avatar was budging. “We’re going to be in the Fire Nation in a week. I’d suggest that you reconsider your attitude, peasant!”

“Hey, my attitude doesn’t need reconsidering! Yours does, oh mighty prince of jerkbenders.” The Avatar proceeded to glare at him, but Zuko didn’t care.

Zuko clenched his fist, feeling heat escape it as he glared at the other teen. “I’m not in the same position you are. If I were you, I’d consider giving my captors more respect!”

The Avatar snorted. “Yeah, not happening.” He then lifted his wrists, displaying the manacles for Zuko to see. “You see these? This tells me that no matter what, you’re going to treat me the same whether or not I give you any. Why bother?”

“You’re a prisoner. I don’t need to give you respect or mercy.”

“Well then, I guess I just don’t need to talk to you.” The Avatar flopped back down, turning his head to look away from Zuko. He then turned to look back at Zuko. “Oh, Prince Ponytail, you mind thanking your uncle for me? The tea was really good.”

The moment Zuko stalked out of the cell area, he punched the wall in frustration. Why was the Avatar so frustrating?


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And this is where the canon storyline goes out the window! Well, besides the fact that Aang died to begin with. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Tenzin sighed as he tried to skip stones across the bay. He was completely bored. Nothing ever seemed to happen around Kyoshi Island, and he was left with nothing to do but wander around. Grey eyes narrowing, he tried to skip another stone, only to grumble when the water just swallowed the flat rock immediately. He was going to do this. Of course he was. He knew he could.

Sadly, the only people that had ever skipped stones across the bay had been the odd waterbenders that were in the village. They could control the water well enough that they didn’t have to worry about moving water disrupting the path of the rocks. Tenzin, however, was no such waterbender, though he wished he was. It would make life so much easier for him if that were the case.

Huffing, he picked up another one when he heard the sound. Blinking, his gaze traveled up until he spotted what seemed to be a white speck on the horizon that seemed to be moving fast. Staring for a good minute, he then realized that he had to do something and booked it toward the village.

“Something’s coming!” The cry erupted from his lips as he raced forward, his lungs expanding as he bellowed that to everyone within range. By the time he had reached the village, he was huffing so hard he was disturbing the dirt into a dust cloud, completely out of breath.

It didn’t take long for several forms to come out of the dojo, and Tenzin’s adopted sister raced out of the doors. Tall and proud and fierce, Suki made her way quickly toward him, her blue eyes bright and focused. “What’s going on, Tenzin? Where were you?”

“Down at the beach. I was trying to skip rocks and I saw something that looked like a white blob moving fast in this direction!” Tenzin waved his arms, trying to convey just how odd this was. “Maybe the Fire Nation’s decided to come attack the village!”

Suki’s eyes snapped up to regard several of the warriors standing ready. “Chiyo, Naoko, you two head down to the beach and see if you can find out what’s going on. It might be a flock of gull-doves for all we know, but keep out of sight otherwise. I’m going to make a report to Oyaji real fast and meet you there.” Suki’s eyes then met the last Kyoshi Warrior that stood at attention. “Yumi, get everyone inside and make _sure_ that Tenzin stays inside.”

“Aw man, c’mon Suki! It’s not like the Unagi’s going to let a ship land in the bay that easily, right?” Tenzin pouted. “Besides, maybe I can help!”

Suki sighed as she regarded the boy. “Tenzin, you’re twelve. You can’t help. You don’t even know how to bend.”

Tenzin pouted. Well, that was obvious. No one could teach him. No one had ever had airbending in a hundred years. Maybe his parents had, but they hadn’t stuck around long enough for Tenzin to learn anything. “This isn’t fair. You don’t know how to bend either!”

Suki rolled her eyes. “Yeah, but I’m a trained warrior. It’s completely different than being an untrained bender.” Her eyes then softened as she looked him over. “You’re also the only known airbender. It’s not safe.”

Tenzin sighed. He _hated_ it when Suki put things that way. It usually meant that she was right, _as usual_ , and that Tenzin couldn’t argue with her about it. He knew that everyone in the village was protective of him, but it meant that he was _bored_ out of his mind most days when interesting things happened.

Suki of course took his silence to mean he was going to listen, as she gestured for Chiyo and Naoko to get a move on. Yumi started leading Tenzin away toward his and Suki’s shared home, all the while giving the younger boy sympathetic looks. “Hey, maybe some time we can practice in the dojo and you can learn a few moves. I’m sure that maybe you can pick up some things to use for bending, right?”

Tenzin deflated a bit. “Yeah, sure. Maybe then Suki would let me do things.” He followed the older girl, kicking at the ground and moving as slowly as possible. When they reached the house, Yumi gave him a reassuring pat on the head before she left to get other people indoors.

He huffed before he glanced around the house. He was _not_ going to be stuck around the village while Suki went off to do something cool. Suddenly a grin crept across his face as he spied an open window, mostly to let in the fresh air from the outside. Maybe he didn’t have to be stuck waiting around.

* * *

Katara sighed as she directed Appa to land. The delay from packing and getting Appa to get going meant that her brother and the Fire Nation ship had long since vanished, but she was confident that she could find it again. She wasn’t about to think that she wouldn’t. However, even Appa needed to rest, and after a few islands that they’d stopped at for the night, she knew they needed another break. That, and Kiba needed to stretch his legs out as well. She was glad that her brother had actually taught him well.

Sliding off Appa, she whistled for the polar dog to come down before she looked around the beach. It seemed abandoned, and she didn’t think they’d have much luck in finding something to eat around. What she really needed was to find a market and hope that what little coin she had would go far. She didn’t think that it’d be good if she managed to starve to death trying to get her brother back, after all.

Kiba of course came down a lot less gracefully than she had, and bolted in the other direction as soon as she turned her back. Huffing in exasperation, she turned her attention to the dog, irritated. “Kiba, get back here!”

The polar dog of course ignored her, and Katara groaned in frustration. This was why Katara didn’t want to bring him along. She knew keeping an eye on him would be a pain, and with them visiting warmer areas, the dog would inevitably explore. Sighing, she plunged into the underbrush, hoping that she could track Kiba down before he got into trouble.

Thankfully, the trail the dog took seemed to be pretty straightforward. Katara lengthened her stride, thinking that if nothing else, she was going to drag Kiba back to the beach whether he wanted to be or not. Maybe if she bent the water around well enough, she could make a pen for Kiba to sit in since he seemed intent on exploring. Or hunting. She hadn’t missed the fact that the dog had picked up his owner’s appetite over the years.

In any case, she chased Kiba for what seemed like several minutes, trying to figure out where the polar dog was heading. It was when she realized that she had gone quite a distance from the beach that she realized that Kiba wasn’t slowing down. “Kiba, come on! Heel! Stay!”

Laughter erupted from ahead, and Katara broke through some brush to a small clearing. There Kiba was, currently slobbering all over some kid with unruly brown hair and grey eyes. The kid was pinned beneath the polar dog, and seemed to be enjoying the attention that Kiba was giving him. “Okay, okay! I give up! Wow, you’re really friendly.”

“Kiba!” The polar dog jerked his head up and stared at Katara before pulling off, his ears drooped and expression sorrowful. Katara fixed the dog with her best frown and pointed back to the beach, which caused the dog to lope back off toward the beach. Katara then turned her attention back to the boy, who had let out a disappointed groan at Kiba’s disappearance. “Are you okay?”

“Am I okay? I’m great!” The kid hopped up, higher than Katara would have expected before settling back down and grinning. “I’ve never seen one of those before? What kind of dog is that?”

Katara sighed, though a small smile graced her features. “It’s a polar dog. We’re from the South Pole.” She then looked around, expecting to see other people. “Where’d you come from?”

“Oh, um.” The kid suddenly looked sheepish. “Well, I’m from a village around here, but I’m not supposed to show you where.”

“Why?” Katara was confused. She didn’t think that people would hide entire villages. Then again, considering the wooded area she found herself in, she shouldn’t be surprised by the idea of hiding a village in all of it.

“Um, we’re trying to stay out of the war?” The kid shifted a little bit, rubbing the back of his head. “I mean, there’s Fire Nation ships that could decide to attack if we’re not careful.”

“Oh.” Katara blinked, suddenly realizing that she was probably the intruder here. However, that didn’t stop her from wondering if they’d seen that Fire Nation ship. “Well, maybe you can ask someone something for me. I’m looking for my brother. He was kidnapped by some Fire Nation soldiers and I was trying to get him back.”

The kid blinked. “You’re a pretty long way from the South Pole. Why would they kidnap someone from the South Pole?”

Now Katara shifted a bit, not knowing if Sokka really wanted the knowledge that he was the Avatar to come out. However, the kid looked nice enough, and Katara made a choice. “Because he’s the Avatar. He found out right before the Fire Nation came and they took him because of it.”

The kid stared. “Wait, seriously?” Suddenly the kid grinned widely, and Katara swore he was buzzing with energy now. “Wow! What happened to the last Avatar? Wasn’t he an airbender? Do you think he taught your brother how to airbend already? Do you think your brother would teach someone how to airbend too?”

Katara blinked as the kid rattled off more questions, and seemed to quite literally not breathe for a good minute. Honestly she wondered why he was asking about airbenders at all. “I’m pretty sure that if Sokka learned airbending, he would have shown it.”

The kid slumped, and Katara felt like she had just trampled over a baby tiger seal or something. “Man, that sucks. How does anyone learn airbending if there’s no one to teach it?”

“I don’t know.” That was one question Katara would have liked to have answered herself. After all, how was Sokka going to learn airbending if there weren’t any airbenders? She knew his task was going to be nearly impossible, but at least there was always a possibility that a firebender might be willing to teach Sokka. If there weren’t any airbenders…

“Suki, no!” Katara snapped her head toward the kid before her vision was obscured by some cloth. Hands suddenly grabbed her, and Katara struggled before her hands were tied behind her back.

* * *

Sokka sighed. Three days. He’d been stuck in the cell now for three days, and so far, it seemed like they were definitely not letting up on the fact that he was a prisoner. Not since they now knew for a fact of what he was. This was probably the worst situation he’d ever been in, bar none. At least before in bad situations he’d managed to get out of them, but now he had no clue how to do it that didn’t require some form of freedom with his arms. Which meant that the majority of his time was spent trying to figure out things he could do to improve his situation. Too bad that nothing seemed to stick.

What he did figure out was that they had to be moving into warmer climes. While it was still too cool to remove his parka, he could tell it was getting warmer and that eventually he’d have to take it off. Coupled with the warmer smell to the air, and Sokka could almost believe the stories of places that never got snow.

He flopped back and sighed again. Ugh, he was so bored! Being chained up sucked, but it sucked worse with the fact he had nothing to do but try and plot an escape. As a result, he was certain that he was getting a bad case of cabin fever being cooped up so much. He rolled to his side, thinking if nothing else, he could maybe try airbending? It was worth a shot, and Sokka knew he could do it. He just didn’t know how to do it.

He knew that Prince Iroh had mentioned something about breathing, and Sokka figured it was worth a shot. Taking a deep breath, he was willing to try breathing out really hard. However, a slamming sound echoed throughout the cell area and Sokka exhaled harshly, losing his concentration entirely as what sounded like stomping was getting closer. He sat up, actually curious and glad that _something_ was breaking the monotony of nothing to do.

What he didn’t expect was for Prince Ponytail himself to storm into the brig, his eyes furious. When he locked eyes with Sokka, Zuko stormed over to the door and glared at the Water Tribesman. “You. You will do everything I say and not make a break for it. Understood?”

Sokka had to have heard him wrong. “Huh?”

Zuko scowled. “You heard me. You are not to do anything unless I order it. Got that?”

Sokka scowled right back. “Yeah, I heard you. What’s going on?”

“That is none of your business.” Zuko turned to one of the men that entered and gestured to the door. One stepped forward to open the door and remove the shackles, causing Sokka’s eyebrows to shoot up to his hairline. The other man stepped forward with a Fire Nation uniform and shoved it at him. “Change into that and don’t take too long.”

With that, Zuko turned on his heel and stormed out, leaving Sokka to standing in the middle of his cell flabbergasted. Just what was going on? The men took to standing right by the door, and Sokka realized that no matter whatever opportunity he was being given, he was going to be watched. He looked toward the guards and figured it couldn’t hurt to ask. “You’re just going to stand there and watch me, aren’t you?”

“We have orders not to let you leave our sight.” Sokka didn’t know the names of the two, so he figured that the guy speaking he was going to nickname Keymaster. The other who had handed him the uniform Sokka decided was Garment Guy.

Both were watching him closely, causing Sokka to pull a face. “You know, I’d _love_ to have some privacy while I’m changing.”

“Not going to happen, Avatar.” Garment Guy shifted and crossed his arms, and Sokka groaned.

“Okay, okay, I get it. Sheesh.” Sokka grumbled to himself, shucking off his parka and shivering for a moment before deciding to hang it up in the bars of the cell to try and preserve his modesty. Keymaster scowled at the Water Tribesman but Sokka ignored him.

It wasn’t long before Sokka was fidgeting in the unfamiliar outfit, thinking they could have gone for something else to wear, but thinking there had to be a reason for it. Zuko hadn’t made an appearance yet, so Sokka figured that he might be able to ask one of the guards just what was happening. Maybe. “So, um, what’s the special occasion?”

Keymaster narrowed his eyes. “Just do what the Prince asks.”

Sokka rolled his eyes. “Hey, all I did was ask. You guys are the ones leaving me in the dark here. How do I even know if you’re not turning around and going back after my village?”

“Because we’re not.” Sokka looked over to see Zuko was back, and crossing his arms while another guard carried armor pieces to hand them to Sokka. “Put those on.”

“I’m thinking no.” Sokka dropped the armor and crossed his arms himself. “You’re the one being all secretive. I came quietly. What gives?”

“That is none of your business!”

“Oh, Commander Zhao, I am really glad you enjoyed the tea!”

Both teens froze, glancing at each other as Iroh’s voice sounded down the hall. Sokka barely got a glimpse of anger across the other’s face before Zuko shot him a heated glance. Wordlessly, the waterbender started scooping up the armor and hastily donned it, grumbling silently while his mind raced. Whoever this Zhao guy was, obviously Zuko didn’t want him to know Sokka was on board. Not that Sokka was going to complain about that. He certainly didn’t want the entire Fire Nation knowing he was the Avatar, either.

Once his helmet was atop his head, Zuko gave Sokka a look over and nodded, a frown still planted firmly on his face. _“Don’t say anything,”_ he hissed, which Sokka scowled at.

He was prevented from saying anything else as a rather tall man with what looked like mutton chops strolled into the brig. Sokka’s first impression was that the guy seemed as smarmy as a weasel-rat. Iroh followed behind him, a polite expression on his face and his arms folded inside his sleeves. The taller man looked around the brig cataloguing what he saw before turning to the prince. “Prince Zuko, you left before the tea was served. You’ve taken care of what you needed to?”

Sokka glanced around the brig himself, suddenly glad that one of the guards had already moved his clothes elsewhere. He just hoped he could get them back before he escaped. How that was going to happen, Sokka didn’t know quite yet.

Zuko, on the other hand, snorted, and Sokka could almost imagine that smoke was rising from his clenched fists. “I was checking on a leak my men reported on. They seemed to have gotten it taken care of.”

Zhao’s eyes swept across the brig again before returning to the prince. “Funny, I don’t see any supplies for a repair.”

“Hey, we work fast.” Both the commander and Zuko looked over at Sokka, Zhao in surprise and Zuko in annoyance as Sokka spoke up. “Besides, it just took a bit of firebending to repair, so nothing really to use for tools.”

Sokka was hoping that the metal ship could be repaired using firebending, but Zhao seemed to accept his explanation. He turned toward Zuko however with a smirk. “I see you seem to have some disrespectful crew here. It makes me wonder if your crew even listens to a disgraced prince’s commands.”

“What do you want, Zhao?” Sokka merely stepped back, thinking that he didn’t want to get in the middle of two firebenders arguing. Not that he knew if the other was one, but Sokka wasn’t going to pretend that Zuko and Iroh were the only ones present.

Zhao walked toward the cell, frowning. “I heard an interesting rumor. One about the Avatar and that you’d found and captured him. I just came to see if it were true.”

Sokka swore that he could feel the sweat break out across his brow. How did the guy even know? He doubted Prince Crankypants would even say anything to anyone. Unless… He glanced over to Zuko, who looked irritated. Yeah, it had to be someone else that said something.

Zuko narrowed his eyes. “I went to investigate a rumor about the Southern Water Tribe. I found nothing. They don’t even have waterbenders there anymore. Hard for anyone to be the Avatar if no one can bend.”

Zhao nodded. “Quite true. Though, I do have to wonder why your uncle decided to pick up a barbarian’s weapon from there.”

Sokka’s hand nearly met his forehead. Nearly, since Iroh was carefully watching everything and had shaken his head at the Water Tribesman. Okay, there was something going on then. Nice to know he was apparently some kind of commodity. “I collect a lot of things during our travels, Commander Zhao. A boomerang of fine make should not come as a surprise.”

“A lot of it is junk, Uncle!” Sokka winced as Zuko snapped at the older man. “I don’t even see why you kept it!”

“It goes nicely with some of the other things I have gathered over the years. My room is enriched by such an addition.” Sokka blinked, and filed that away. Iroh didn’t seem too bothered by saying that Boomerang was in his room. Either he was confident that Sokka couldn’t get to it, or it was a hint. Sokka didn’t know which.

Zuko turned toward Zhao now, his gaze heated. “If you’re done on my ship?”

Zhao smirked. “Actually, I was thinking of taking a tour of the ship. See if there’re any repairs that need to be done on it. After all, if there’s been one leak, there could be other problems as well.”

Iroh stepped forward. “I can show you around if you so wish.”

“No.” Zhao shook his head. “I think I should have a tour with someone that does repairs on it regularly.” He turned to look at Sokka, who gulped under his helmet. “I think this young man should be sufficient. After all, I don’t want to take time out of your day.”

“Huh?” Sokka’s voice cracked as he stared at the older man. This guy couldn’t be serious, could he?

“He has other duties to attend to.” If looks could kill, Sokka was sure that both he and Zhao would be dead by now. In any case, Zuko was certainly giving him a look that suggested he was overstepping his bounds.

“I believe his duties would still be served giving the ship a thorough look around.” Zhao looked over at Zuko. “Unless, there was something else you’re not telling me.”

Sokka didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at the idea that Zuko was hiding something from Zhao. Zuko looked quite annoyed at the implication, and sent a heated glare Sokka’s direction before speaking. “Fine, but there should be someone else just in case there’s any trouble with your tour.”

“Of course.” If Zhao’s smile could get any bigger, Sokka could have sworn it would have split the older man’s face in two.

* * *

Tenzin walked sullenly back to the village, Suki right behind him as two other warriors led the girl. He knew he was in big trouble, but what was he supposed to do? Just stay hidden until the Fire Nation either decided to stop the war or conquer Kyoshi Island? He doubted it was going to happen that easily, and considering that now he knew the Avatar was alive and currently captured by the Fire Nation, he didn’t even know if there was going to be an end to the war.

Therefore, when they finally got to the village, Tenzin crossed his arms and gave Suki his best glare as she went to get Oyaji. The girl they had brought back was tied to the base of Avatar Kyoshi’s statue by Chiyo and Naoko. Deciding that he was _perfectly safe_ (unlike what Suki thought), he took a seat on the ground and refused to budge, even when Yumi spotted him and started scolding him for not being in the house.

Thankfully, it wasn’t that long before Oyaji and Suki returned, the older man giving Tenzin a look before looking over the girl the warriors had captured. The girl, to her credit, was struggling and trying to get free before Oyaji stepped forward. “You have some explaining to do.”

“And if you don’t answer our questions, we’re throwing you back into the water with the Unagi.” Suki stood with her hands on her hips, with what Tenzin could only figure was her big sister look on her face. “Who are you, and what are you doing here?”

The girl tried to look in Suki’s direction, but the blindfold was obviously preventing her from seeing anything. “I’m Katara, from the Southern Water Tribe. I was on my brother’s flying bison when we had to land to rest.”

“That’s a lie. You’re probably a Fire Nation spy sent to watch the island.”

“What? No!” The girl, Katara, struggled more. “Why would you even say that? My tribe’s been attacked by the Fire Nation. Why would I even want to spy for them?”

“She’s telling the truth, Suki.” Tenzin rolled his eyes. After all, he’d probably seen the flying bison, and he’d nearly been licked to death by Katara’s polar dog. There was no way she could have been lying. She didn’t even think there had been a village on the island, and her brother was the Avatar.

“You’re in enough trouble!” Suki snapped.

“Well, she is!” Tenzin jumped into the air and landed on his feet. “Her brother’s the Avatar! Why would she even want to be a spy for the Fire Nation?”

“That’s right!” Katara struggled some more. “My brother _is_ the Avatar! I’m trying to save him from the Fire Nation!”

“What?” Suki and Oyaji looked shocked, and Tenzin felt a bit of smug satisfaction at it. “How? The Avatar’s an airbender.”

“Well he died, okay. I don’t know how. But my brother was just a waterbender before weird stuff started happening to him, and he’s even firebended before.” Katara looked like she was trying to glare in Suki’s direction. “I would be trying to help him, but you decided to capture me and tie me up!”

“That is enough!” Oyaji looked like he was starting to lose his patience. “Regardless of how you got here, we are trying to stay out of the war. You are going to bring trouble to our island.”

Just then a loud bellow sounded through the village, and what looked like a giant white creature landed in the middle of the village. Tenzin’s eyes went wide as he realized that this must have been the flying bison that Katara was talking about. The bison took one look at everyone and then turned around and simply flapped his tail. A wind kicked up from the action, and several of the Kyoshi Warriors were knocked over along with Suki and Oyaji.

Tenzin was the only one that managed to keep his footing, though he stared in amazement. “Wow, that was airbending? How’d he do that?”

Katara, however, had a different reaction. “Appa!” She struggled against her bonds, trying to get to the large creature. “Boy am I glad to hear you.”

Appa decided to make himself busy by standing right in front of Katara, bellowing threateningly. Everyone else was starting to regain their feet, staring in shock. Only Suki seemed to snap out of it long enough to voice her thoughts. “That’s an air bison?”

“Apparently.” Tenzin decided he’d had enough and walked toward Appa. His arms were raised in surrender and he swallowed. “Um, hey buddy. Who are you?”

The only response he got was a snuff in his direction before a large tongue licked him. Appa had apparently decided that Tenzin wasn’t a threat and was instead knocking the boy to the ground and nuzzling him. The boy had thought that being licked by Kiba was messy. Apparently he was wrong, since Appa’s tongue seemed to be slimier.

Unfortunately, while Appa seemed to be more inclined to pay attention to Tenzin, Katara’s polar dog made an appearance, bursting through the village and standing between Katara and the others. Tenzin tried to shove Appa off to get between them, but apparently Appa was more content to pin him down. The dog, however, started growling low in his throat as he faced the warriors.

“Suki…” Oyaji seemed to give Suki a look. Suki glanced from Tenzin back to Katara, a frown on her face as she looked to be thinking. She then strode forward, causing Appa to growl slightly and turn his attention away from Tenzin. Ignoring this, she took out a knife and cut the bonds loose. Oyaji himself seemed to be considering something, but neither one said what was on their mind.

Katara looked relieved, though still wary as the blindfold was finally removed. “What happened to whoever ambushed me?”

“We ambushed you. You’re on Kyoshi Island.” Suki gestured to the rest of the warriors as she spoke.

Katara blinked. “Um, I don’t think I’ve ever heard of it.”

Tenzin blinked. “You’ve never heard of Kyoshi Island? How? I thought everyone had.”

Suki merely palmed her face. “Tenzin…”

Oyaji however narrowed his eyes. “Kyoshi Island is the birthplace of Avatar Kyoshi. We have managed to stay out of the war, but you coming here may have brought the war with you.”

Appa gave a low bellow, though the dog sat firmly next to Katara. Katara shook her head however. “You’re wrong. The only way the Fire Nation could have followed me was if they had been following me from the South Pole. The only ship that was even down there took my brother.”

“Whom you claim is the current Avatar. The Avatar would be an airbender, not a waterbender.” Oyaji looked Katara over. “You say that the last Avatar died. How did they die?”

Katara looked frustrated. “I don’t know! I just know that Sokka and I ran across a body in the ice, and Sokka was really freaked out over it. Then he started glowing and Appa and I had to knock him out of the air before he blew all of us into the ocean.”

Oyaji frowned and looked at Suki. Some sort of silent conversation went on between them, which Tenzin always hated because that meant they were making a decision without anyone else knowing. The old man then shook his head. “Regardless of your claim, we find that hard to believe. You will leave this island immediately or we will be forced to make good on our promise.”

“What?” Tenzin finally stood back up. “You can’t! What if she’s telling the truth? You know that the Avatar disappeared a century ago. If he did die, then that would mean that the Water Tribes would be the next ones to have the Avatar.”

Oyaji simply shook his head. “Tenzin, I believe you might be a bit naïve about all of this.”

“Naïve?” Tenzin clenched his fists. “How am I naïve? I know what the Fire Nation did already! They probably took my parents from me! I’m probably the only airbender alive because of them!”

Katara gasped, a hand going to her face as Suki frowned. Oyaji however looked adamant. “We will discuss the events later, however she must leave this village and the island.”

“Appa needs his rest though!” Katara glared. “At least give me until the morning and then I’ll leave.”

Oyaji looked over to Suki, who crossed her arms. “Fine, you will have your rest, but there will be warriors watching you. Yumi, Naoko, take her back to the beach.”

Tenzin watched as possibly the only chance he’d ever have at learning to airbend walked out of the village. It was completely unfair. They didn’t even listen to him. However, Tenzin started formulating a plan. Hopefully the others wouldn’t be too mad at him.

* * *

Sokka wished that he hadn’t had to show Commander Muttonchops around, especially since it prevented him from really getting to his boomerang. He knew exactly where it was, or well, he would as soon as he figured out where Iroh’s room was. The only problem was that he had Garment Guy watching his every move, and Sokka wasn’t an idiot. He’d probably fry the moment that the guy suspected anything.

The only thing he was glad about was that he’d snuck once onto the Fire Nation ship and gotten enough of a look around that he knew the basics of where everything was. This, coupled with the fact he figured that the best places to check for leaks would be rusty spots and joints, and he was pretty covered. Remembering this made his heart hurt though. His dad had shown him how to check for leaks in Water Tribe ships once a long time ago. He honestly wished that Hakoda was here now.

Regardless, Sokka was grateful that Zhao hadn’t tried to ask him for his name or anything, simply because he’d have to think for a suitably Fire Nation-y name. Hey, it was his first time away from the South Pole, he was allowed to have a learning curve. Except, if Muttonchops decided to ask him to firebend…

“So, how long have you been on the ship, Private?”

Oh great, a question Sokka didn’t want being asked. Either Muttonchops was testing his loyalty to the jerkbending prince, or seeing if he’d slip up somewhere. Sokka shrugged noncommittally. “Only about for the last couple of weeks. I just got on at the last port we were in, really.”

Garment Guy seemed to blink at the question himself and speared Sokka with a look. “We were back in the Hu Xin provinces and he came on during an exchange.”

“I see.” Zhao continued scrutinizing Sokka and he squirmed a bit under the commander’s gaze. “That would explain much. I should send a recommendation to the colony governors to make more of an effort to train their sailors better.”

“Hey, we’re just fine training ourselves!” Sokka then blinked at his own outburst and shuffled. “Um, sir.”

Garment Guy groaned as Zhao snorted. “Again, a lack of training. You have your work cut out for you, Lieutenant Jee.”

“I’ll make a note on his record, Commander.” Jee had his hands tucked behind his back, observing the entire scene with a frown. At least Sokka knew his name now, though he thought Garment Guy was a bit better. “Private, if you are finished with your work?”

“I should be. Um, sir.” Sokka was officially hating the titles being thrown around. It was way easier in the Water Tribes, he thought. “I did the rest of the ship earlier.” Which was a lie, but the look that the lieutenant was giving him suggested that he was definitely _done_.

“Good. You will give me the rest of inspection in your report later and I shall hand it in to the commander.” Jee glanced back toward Zhao, who seemed like he was satisfied with Sokka’s dismissal.

“If you’ll excuse me,” Zhao started, and Sokka was definitely thinking of weasel-rats now. “I would like to know the private’s name, so that I may write up my own report on the incident.”

Sokka’s mind blanked as Jee blinked himself. “Uh, Fire. Wang Fire, sir.”

Sokka watched as Zhao nodded, seeming to accept it, while Jee’s face showed a moment of exasperation. “That does sound like something I’d expect from a colonial. You are dismissed, Private Fire.”

“Private Fire, report to the prince to see if there was anything else he wished for you to do.” Jee managed to recollect himself, and Sokka gave an awkward bow in return, hurrying off to escape.

He could almost laugh, if he wasn’t still in the middle of the enemy’s ship and currently still a captive. How had the Fire Nation managed to keep the war going if they had people like that in command? At least it got him away from Zhao, and ne nearly groaned as he heard footsteps behind him. Apparently the lieutenant had decided to follow after him, presumably to tail him like Royal Scarface had ordered.

Instead, he felt an arm wrap around his shoulders as Prince Iroh instead caught up with him, and Sokka almost slumped with relief. “Ah, Private. I just came from Prince Zuko and he wished me to follow up on the inspection. I believe we can do that over a cup of tea and a round of Pai Sho, if you’re interested.”

“Uh, sure?” Suddenly Sokka was getting the impression that Iroh was saying it because Muttonchops was still in the vicinity, and a quick glance around only confirmed his suspicions. “I’d be honored, Prince Iroh, sir.”

“Oh good.” Iroh smiled. “I was wanting to have someone sample my latest blend.”

Iroh dropped his arm and walked along, and Sokka followed, trying to think about how exactly he had become stuck in some sort of weird alternate dimension where he was siding with the Fire Nation prince to… To do what? Drink tea and play some kind of game? Sokka might not have been all that familiar with prisoners, but he was pretty sure that prisoners weren’t treated that way.

He followed Iroh nonetheless, and when they had gotten a considerable distance away from Muttonchops, Iroh decided to speak. “You are lucky that Fire happens to be a common family name in the colonies. I would have chosen something other than Wang for a first name. Perhaps Lee.”

“Okay, can someone tell me what’s going on now?” Sokka was completely confused. “Who is that guy, and why was he so interested in looking around the ship? Was he actually looking for the Avatar?”

Iroh opened a door and gestured for Sokka to enter. Sokka did so hesitantly, expecting yet another prison cell, but was surprised to see a room with an eclectic collection of items. “Commander Zhao has gotten the idea that the Avatar was on the ship, yes. It was best to keep him occupied while he searched.”

“Okay then…” Sokka watched as Iroh closed the door behind him and took a seat at a low table. “So um, no offence, but why not hide me in one of the holds? I mean, I’m supposed to be a prisoner, but usually prisoners aren’t disguised as crew on a ship.”

“That would be my own stroke of brilliance, Avatar Sokka.” At Sokka’s groan, Iroh amended his statement. “Sokka. Forgive me, it slipped my mind that you didn’t want to be reminded that you were the Avatar.”

Sokka just nodded, and took another look around the room before his eyes fell on something familiar. “Boomerang!” He leapt to his feet and rushed over to his weapon, grinning. “I can’t believe that you actually kept it. I thought I’d lost it!”

Iroh chuckled. “I had found it interesting when I saw it in action, though it must remain here. You will have to forgive me if I don’t allow you to have it.”

Sokka deflated before he could pick it up. Groaning, he sat back down and flopped over backwards. “I can’t believe that I forgot that bit.” Closing his eyes, he pulled off the helmet and set it next to himself. Cracking an eye open, he blinked as he realized that Iroh had apparently busied himself with making tea. “You actually weren’t joking with the tea thing?”

“One of life’s simplest pleasures.” Iroh turned toward Sokka after breathing fire onto the pot to start it boiling. “We are fortunate that we had done an inspection of the ship recently for leaks. Otherwise we would be forced to do another round of inspections and hope it was before Commander Zhao became suspicious.”

“So I’m guessing we’re still on track to the Fire Nation, aren’t we?” Sokka rubbed the back of his head, grimacing at the feel of hair growing beyond his wolf tail.

“Unfortunately we are. Though, we might take a detour to make sure that Zhao does not become suspicious.” Iroh set down a cup of tea for Sokka, cradling his own in his hands. “It would make our story more believable, after all.”

“Where I’m going to be shoved into some cell and probably left there until I died. _Great._ ” Sokka sat up. “So you’re still on this whole kick about talking to the Avatar?”

“Of course.” Iroh smiled and then pulled out a box. “Now, I believe I said that we were going to play Pai Sho. We have some time before the commander leaves the ship for at least one game.”

An hour later, Sokka was frowning as he examined the board. Iroh had quickly found out that Sokka had never played the game before, and proceeded to begin teaching it to him as a result. Sokka, of course, had given the game his full attention, very much aware that he’d be put back in the brig as soon as they were out of port. He wanted to try and break out, was tempted to grab Boomerang and knock the old man out to make his escape. However, the fact he was in a Fire Nation port had halted that line of thought, and he knew that if he attempted it, he’d probably have the entire place after him.

He placed his finger on one of the tiles, thinking about where to move it, when he heard Iroh tsk at him. “I would not do that if I were you. One false move and you’ll have half your pieces captured.”

“Oh come on! One little hint. You haven’t given me that many this entire game!”

A sudden knock drew them both up from their musings, and Iroh quirked an eyebrow. “Come in.”

Zuko stormed in, looking like he was about to start spitting fire. He glared at the two, and Sokka swore that steam was about to escape the other teen’s mouth. “We have a problem.”

“Oh?” Iroh didn’t seem in the least bit concerned, though Sokka felt on edge.

“Zhao decided to assign some of his men on board. Guaranteed they’re going to be looking for any excuse to send back that we have the Avatar.” Zuko glared at Sokka. “What did you tell him?”

“Me?” Sokka blinked. “I didn’t tell him anything! I kept my mouth shut and inspected the ship like you asked. You can even ask that lieutenant guy about what we talked about!”

“You had to have done something! Otherwise why was he so interested in putting someone on my ship?”

“Prince Zuko, perhaps he is merely suspicious because of the rumor.” Iroh took a sip of his tea. “After all, it was that rumor that caused him to come aboard in the first place.”

“And what am I supposed to do?” Zuko redirected his glare at Iroh. Sokka imagined that if he ever tried to do that to Gran-Gran, he’d have his ear twisted off his head. “Let him walk around and plot escape?”

“Um, I’m right here.” Sokka started glaring himself. “You could at least call me by my name instead of Avatar or him, you know!”

“What’s done is done.” Iroh looked at his nephew calmly. “The best thing we can do is try and ensure that no one suspects Sokka is with us.”

Zuko snorted. “Fine! You’re in charge of keeping an eye on him. If I even hear that he’s tried to escape-“

“You shall be notified immediately.” Iroh took a sip of his tea. “Now, since it seems that the excitement of the day has ended, why don’t you come and sit? We’re enjoying a nice game of Pai Sho and you can help give Sokka pointers.”

Zuko growled and stormed out, slamming the door behind him. Meanwhile, Sokka was already turning over the events of the day in his head. Muttonchops had put people on board the ship, Prince Ponytail was apparently pissed that he was being scrutinized, and Sokka possibly had free rein of the ship. If he played his hand right, he might actually figure out a way off.


End file.
